Slagle, her husband, got into an argument in April 1990. She fled her home with her infant son. Slagle and her husband ended up in a shopping centre, where she sat in the lot cooling off. Soon she noticed a man looking at her. After a brief conversation, he approached her and took them on a short drive. Slagle panicked as they drove towards a remote, deserted location.
“I didn’t really know what his intentions were, but I knew they weren’t good,”She said this on the Oprah WinfreyIn 2009, show was reinstated by Chico Enterprise-Record.
Slagle tried to protect Jesperson’s son and daughter for the next few days. Slagle had a conversation with Melissa Moore, Jesperson’s daughter. True Crime DailyJesperson claimed that he tried to cut her neck several times. Slagle’s child was present at one point. “rolled onto the brake pedal, and Jesperson tried to crush his skull.”
Jesperson stopped eventually. Jesperson started the car, and drove back in silence. Jesperson told Slagle that he would never let a stranger drive you in your car, and they were getting closer to the town.
Slagle explained to Oprah why she survived. “I don’t know if it was the baby screaming or whether it had to do with God, but I could not believe it.”
