James Koedatich

James Jerold Koedatich (born June 12, 1948) is an American serial killer who kidnapped and murdered two young women within a two-week span in Morris County, New Jersey, in late 1982. Following his arrest, he was tried, convicted, and sentenced to death, but was resentenced to life in prison in 1990. Prior to the murders, Koedatich murdered his roommate in Florida, for which he served eleven years in prison, and while in prison he killed his cellmate, but that was ruled to be self-defense. Their father, John, was alleged to have been very abusive and would regularly beat, kick, and slap his wife. In 1956, after Julia was hospitalized, John Sr. left the family and began a relationship with another woman.

Murders While in Florida, Koedatich shared an apartment with 40-year-old Robert J. Anderson in Surfside. On June 7, Koedatich was arrested for armed robbery, and while awaiting trial, he managed to escape the county jail. On June 13, Koedatich strangled Anderson to death and hid his body in a closet.

On September 4, 1973, during his prison term, Koedatich fatally stabbed fellow inmate Jerry Kent Barber, who was serving twelve years for kidnapping.

On November 23, 1982, Koedatich came across 18-year-old Amie Hoffman. Hoffman, a cheerleader for Parsippany Hills High School, was leaving her job at a mall in Hanover Township, when Koedatich abducted her and threw her into his vehicle. Once in a secluded location, he sexually assaulted Hoffman before stabbing her to death and disposing of her body in the Mendham Reservoir in Randolph Township. Her body was transported by the naturally moving water into a water holding tank, where it would be found two days later. During the subsequent autopsy, semen belonging to Hoffman's killer was discovered on her body.

On December 5, 1982, Koedatich abducted another woman, 25-year-old Deirdre O'Brien, at knifepoint after running her off the road. Once at an Interstate 80 rest area, he raped and stabbed her repeatedly before leaving the area. O'Brien was found alive on the side of the road by a truck driver and was rushed to a hospital, where she died.

Arrest In January 1983, Koedatich brought himself to the investigators' attention by claiming he was stabbed by a woman while driving alone at night. In 2011, Koedatich contacted the New Jersey Department of Corrections, requesting relocation to a prison in Illinois to be closer to his family; however, Commissioner Gary Lanigan rejected the proposal. In 2017, Koedatich communicated with the Innocence Project, requesting that newly discovered DNA evidence be analysed to possibly clear his name. His latest parole date is set for 2038 when he is 90 years old.

In media Koedatich's crimes are featured in the episode "Fatal Error" on the television show The New Detectives. In 2022, the case was featured in an episode of Canadian TV show Finally Caught titled "Hoffman-O’Brien".

Crimes are also featured on the TV show ‘’Paranormal Witness’’ S3 E14 “Through the Eyes of a Killer”. Told from the perspectives of some of the lead detectives on the case and psychic Nancy Weber.

Crimes are also featured on the Netflix Series, "Murder Under Friday Night Lights". S2 E2. The episode tells the story through interviews, archival footage, and firsthand accounts from those closest to the case, blending true crime storytelling with the culture of small-town football.