Blood-soaked confession reveals disturbing details in Minnesota killing as court weighs mental illness defense
A Minnesota court case is drawing renewed attention after newly detailed records outlined the brutal killing of a local councilwoman by her son, along with the chilling confession he made in the immediate aftermath.
According to court documents, Eric Leif Jordahl was found covered in blood inside the family garage after his father returned home on July 23, 2020. The discovery prompted a police response to the lakeside residence, where investigators would uncover a deeply disturbing crime scene.
The criminal complaint filed in Sherburne County states that Jordahl, who was 20 at the time, admitted to the killing moments after being confronted. “The devil exists, it’s in me and I ate Mom,” he told his father, according to the filing.
Crime scene details outlined in court filings
Authorities later located Rosalie Johnson, a 62-year-old Big Lake City Council member, in the basement of the home. She had been beaten and stabbed, with severe injuries and parts of her body missing, as described in the probable cause statement cited by the Daily Mail.
Investigators determined that the attack began late at night after Jordahl entered his mother’s room while his father was at work. When she told him to return to bed, he assaulted her before retrieving a knife and repeatedly stabbing her. Police also reported that he bit her during the attack.
The complaint further states that a portion of her body had been removed and placed in the kitchen. Officers found human tissue and a butcher’s knife on a table inside the home.
The medical examiner concluded that cannibalism occurred before the victim died, citing extensive blunt-force and sharp-force injuries to her head, neck, and torso. Judge Karen Schommer later referenced that report in her ruling, stating that Jordahl “began to cut up and cannibalize” his mother while she was still alive.
Legal proceedings and mental illness claim
The case has followed a complex legal path in the years since the killing. In 2021, Jordahl was deemed incompetent to stand trial, but proceedings resumed in 2024 after he was found competent again.
His defense has argued that he should be found not guilty by reason of mental illness, leading to a split trial process separating the determination of guilt from the mental health defense.
Jordahl, now 26, waived his right to a jury trial, and Judge Schommer found him guilty on all counts, including first-degree murder, which carries an automatic life sentence.
The court is now set to hear additional evidence to determine whether he meets the legal standard for mental illness, a decision that could result in placement in a psychiatric facility instead of prison.
