Sherry Heffernan: Pennsylvania woman faces life in prison for killing father and his GF, victims’ kin call it ‘pure relief’

TOMS RIVER, NEW JERSEY: A Pennsylvania woman now faces a life sentence after being found guilty last week of murder and weapons offenses connected to the shooting and stabbing deaths of her father and his long-term girlfriend in New Jersey.

When the Ocean County jury foreperson announced on March 1, Friday that Sherry Lee Heffernan, 57, of Landenberg, had been found guilty of killing her father, John Enders, 87, and his longtime live-in girlfriend, Francoise Pitoy, 75, she did not show any emotion.

Sherry Heffernan's life sentence

Heffernan will receive a life sentence on May 10, The Associated Press reported.

In the fall of 2021, the bodies of the victims were found at John Enders' waterfront house in Surf City, Long Beach Island. Both had been repeatedly stabbed and shot in the jaw, according to the police.

Authorities in New Jersey claimed that Heffernan was angry with her father for allegedly excluding her from his will.

On September 29, 2021, she allegedly drove her recreational vehicle to the residence.

In addition to three footprints that were recognized as Heffernan's on blood-stained portions of the kitchen floor, the prosecutors presented evidence that tracked the car and Heffernan's cellphone along the path to her father's home.

Defense lawyers believe they presented enough arguments

Defense lawyers Phil Nettl and Steven Altman presented testimony challenging the notion that Heffernan was the person seen at the residence climbing over a fence, arguing there was no proof she was in the car.

According to Altman, they had presented enough arguments to prevent a guilty decision, as per the Asbury Park Press.

Since her arrest in October 2021, Heffernan has been detained at the Ocean County jail.

After making a brief appearance in Chester County Court of Common Pleas, where she told a reporter she was innocent and that she was "being framed," the Daily Local News reported that she was extradited from Pennsylvania.

One of Pitoy’s daughters, Valerie Lewis Evans expressed her satisfaction with the decision and added, "Prayers do work."

Pitoy's other daughter, Sandrine Lewis, told the Asbury Park Press that she thought justice had been served.

Enders’ grandson, Andrew Vero exclaimed, "It’s pure relief, and we can move on now."