Kumari Shreya
Max’s ‘The Truth About Jim’ follows Sierra Barter, who has embarked on a quest to learn more about her step-grandfather, Jim Mordecai. Over the course of the show, the viewers learned more and more about the familial ties that connected the two and the various people who had their own stories to share about Jim. Given just how ardently Sierra pursued each and every kernel of information, one cannot help but admire her determination and strength.
Who is Sierra Barter?
Sierra Barter, the daughter of Shannon Barter, hails from a large but certainly unusual family. Her maternal grandmother, Judy Mordecai, was the third wife to Jim Mordecai, who remained a huge part of the three ladies’ lives. Prior to being married to Judy, Jim was actually a teacher at the school where Shannon was a student. Having herself felt uncomfortable in the presence of Jim, Shannon had been vehemently against the idea of Judy’s marriage to Jim.
In fact, Sierra remembers that Shannon and Judy had become estranged about a decade before Jim’s death in 2008 due to a grave incident. Shannon shared that while driving her back from college, Jim had apparently driven down an unknown road and had started to talk about how he wanted to sexually abuse and/or murder her. Though she was apparently able to snap Jim out of that mood, Shannon gave her mother the ultimatum of either leaving Jim or saying goodbye to her daughter and granddaughter. Judy chose to remain with Jim, and for the next decade, Shannon and Sierra had little to no contact with Jim.
However, Sierra confessed that her step-grandfather had cast a huge shadow on her life. Having been a victim of sexual assault two times in her life, Sierra confessed how she had found herself doubting when it came to reporting the incidents to the authorities. The latest one had actually happened when she was apparently drunk, and the perpetrator had been someone she considered to be a friend. She emotionally revealed how she felt that she could only rely on her mother, Shannon, for support.
In order to not only find her own form of inner peace but also to investigate just what kind of a man she was related to, Sierra delved as deeply as she could to find information about Jim. This allowed her to get back in contact with various other members of her family. Jeanne Kirkpatrick, Jim’s wife prior to Judy, confessed that he had been sexually and physically violent, even though few believed her claims. Jeanne’s daughter and Jim’s stepdaughter, Christi Probst, revealed that she had been assaulted by Jim when she was only 13.
In fact, Jim and Jeanne’s daughter Jaime Mordecai stated that she, too, had been sexually abused by her father. Meanwhile, Melissa Mordecai confessed that she had wanted to impress her father from an early age, something that has seemingly left many emotional scars on them. Christi’s brother, Michael Probst, also revealed how Jim had once driven him down a road and pointed out places where women had been apparently found dead and nude.
Sierra Barter Found The Investigation To Be Cathartic
Given Jim Mordecai’s life story and his actions surrounding his student and family members, Sierra Barter could not help but wonder if he might have actually been connected to some of the most infamous crimes in the state of California. In particular, she investigated the possibility of him being responsible for the Santa Rosa hitchhiker murders, a series of killings that took place in 1971 and 1972 in and around Santa Rosa, California.
For some time, Sierra also considered the possibility that Jim may have been the Zodiac Killer and was visibly relieved when Mike Butterfield, an expert on the infamous murderer, pointed out that the possibility of that was low. However, Jim’s connection to the killings that happened in Santa Rosa remained a strong one. This led Sierra and various other family members to collect possible DNA traces of Jim so that they could be matched with the samples of DNA that were recovered from the bodies of two of the victims.
While the results of the DNA matches have not been revealed yet, Sierra and her family have confessed to having found the process cathartic. The investigation allowed the estranged family members to reconnect and celebrate life anew, with the shadow of Jim Mordecai hanging over them. While Sierra herself does not seem to be very active on social media, her work in the documentary has helped her earn much praise from the public. Sierra herself has expressed hope that her work will give people across the world the courage to step up and talk about their own experiences in regard to sexual assault.
Read More: Where Are Jim Mordecai’s Ex-Wives Now?
