Jami met Steven Sherer in 1986. He had a prior criminal record for abusing and hospitalizing a previous girlfriend at the time. His file included documented threats, harassment complaints and restraining orders from the same woman. Jami's family and friends noticed an obvious change in her behavior after becoming romantically involved with Steven. They stated that she became withdrawn and dyed her hair blonde at his insistence, along with receiving breast implants. She was also fired from a job at that time due to poor attendance. All signs pointed to an abusive relationship and Jami's loved ones tried to convince her not to marry Steven.
However, they wed in 1987. Their son was born in 1988. By 1987, Steven was convicted of choking and assaulting a police officer in a drunken rage. Steven had been labeled as a habitual offender by the late 1980's, mainly due to a string of theft convictions and traffic violations. Another troubling sign came in the form of Steven's consistent invitations to friends and his advertisements in adult magazines for group sexual activities with himself and his wife. Jami apparently had enough of Steven's abuse by September of 1990. The couple had been arguing for some time when she finally drove to her parents home nearby with their son on September 29, 1990.
Jami told her parents that she intended to leave Steven the following day and planned to move into her parents house. Steven telephoned Jami later that evening and asked her to return to the couple's residence, she refused and informed him she wanted a divorce. According to Jami's mother, Steven did not accept that answer and pleaded with Jami to meet him the following day. She agreed to meet him outside of their home the next morning. Jami phoned her mother shortly after 08:30 AM on September 30, 1990. She left their son in her parents care. She said that Steven grabbed her purse and ran off shortly after meeting him. Jami also said that she figured Steven was en route to the couple's home and she intended to go there to reclaim her purse. Jami called her parents again at approximately 11:45 AM that morning. She said that Steven was at their residence and she was heading back to her parents house after stopping for lunch at Taco Time, a fast food restaurant. Her mother told investigators that Jami did not seem to be distressed at the time of her final phone call. Jami has never been seen nor heard from again.
Jami's 1980 Mazda RX7 was discovered as an abandoned vehicle in a church parking lot in Shoreline, Washington several days after her initial disappearance. Her purse was missing from the car. A suitcase with her clothing was located in the vehicle but her underwear was not included with her belongings.
There was no trace of Jami at the scene. Friends told police that Steven began acting very strangely immediately following Jami's disappearance. He frequented bars after his wife vanished and wore her panties tied around his arm. Steven also wore her necklace around his neck. He told friends the trinkets made him feel "closer to Jami." His sister informed police that she had seen a "large red spot" on the carpet of Steven and Jami's home the week she went missing. Investigators found evidence that the carpet in question had been repeatedly steam cleaned and a new piece of carpet was placed on the floor. Witnesses stated that Steven hired a carpet cleaning service the week Jami disappeared.
Steven was found guilty of first degree murder in June 2000. He was sentenced to 60 years in prison.
