June 24, 2022 • 30 mins
27-year-old Jennifer Snyder was a passionate animal lover and a committed veterinary assistant. She was thrilled to be expecting her first child with her longtime boyfriend. However, when she failed to attend her first ultrasound appointment, her loved ones grew worried and were determined to locate her. The pressing question was: Where was Jennifer Snyder, and who was responsible for her disappearance?
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
They say, you can tell a lot about a person and
how one treats animals, evenGandhi was quoted as saying the
greatness of a nation and itsmoral progress can be judged by
the way its animals are treated,being passionate about animals.
Isn't just limited todomesticated ones, such as dogs
and cats.
(00:24):
It's caring enough to make sureyour bird feeders are filled or
putting peanuts out for thesquirrels that visit your yard.
These indeed are true tale, talesigns of a true animal lover.
When an animal lover seeks out apartner, it's no surprise.
We look for someone who lovesanimals as much as us, usually
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both people's mutual love foranimals will usually overlap
with other interests.
And after all one's relationshipwith animals is a good
prediction in determining one'sability to love.
So it was no surprise thatJennifer Snyder a 27 year old
veterinary technician fell forDavid Adam.
(01:06):
Rapaport the head veterinarianwhere they both worked.
Typically veterinarians possessempathy, sympathy, and
compassion.
For those who cannot speak forthemselves, all characteristics
we look for in a mate, butsometimes the outside appearance
of good is massed by evil.
And it's usually done by someoneclose to us, a person we least
(01:30):
likely would suspect the devilwho disguises themselves is
charming, but secretly lives adouble life using many along the
way and plotting evil for a longtime undetected.
You're listening to departed inPenn, Kentucky, episode three,
playing both sides.
(01:52):
The case of Jennifer Snyder, 27year old Jennifer Snyder was
(02:26):
described by family and friendsas intelligent kind, loving
giving.
And most of all, a very peacefulperson.
Jennifer's mother Patriciadescribes Jennifer as somewhat
of an animal whisperer and hermain purpose in life was caring
and saving animals, especiallyones that had very little time
(02:50):
left Jennifer's passion crossedover to her career where she
went to school, became afull-time veterinary technician,
her life revolved around theveterinary practice she worked
at and the animals she saved,including her dog, Arthur and
her horse Margie.
And when she wasn't riding ortaking care of Margie, she loved
(03:11):
showing other horses andcompeted with them as well.
So when Jennifer failed to checkin with her roommate and close
friend, Hillary Shavan, it wasno surprise that Hillary became
alarmed.
Not only were Hillary andJennifer roommates, they were
close friends and coworkers,both working as veterinary
technicians at maple hillveterinary hospital in Mckenjie
(03:34):
Pennsylvania for the past fewmonths or so they shared the two
bedroom apartment that wasadjacent to the building that
housed the animal hospital.
Since the girls were close, itwas not unusual for both girls
to check in with each other ontheir days off.
The Dayton question wasWednesday, March 16th, 2011.
(03:55):
It was Jennifer's day off.
And she had left the apartmentaround 11:00 AM to go to lunch
with her boyfriend, David, AdamRapaport.
Jennifer had been lookingforward to this day for quite
some time.
She and David were expectingtheir first child together.
And the following day, March18th, 2011, the couple planned
(04:16):
to attend Jennifer's firstultrasound appointment together.
Then afterwards David was gonnaspend the night at Jennifer and
Hillary's apartment.
Initially Justine Jennifer'ssister was to go to her
appointment with her, butJennifer said David was gonna
come.
So there was no need for Justineto attend to celebrate.
(04:39):
David had planned a specialsurprise for Jennifer, somewhat
of a Ron Nevo.
He told her throughout the day,Hillary continually texted and
called Jennifer to see where shewas.
And if she was okay, Jenniferhad never responded.
And that struck Hillary as odd,Jennifer was known to be
(04:59):
extremely responsible andcourteous.
Hillary always got a response.
When Hillary reached out toJennifer, even Arthur Jennifer's
dog had been acting anxious,pacing back and forth all day,
waiting for her to come back aself-described warrior.
Hillary had a funny feeling,something wasn't right with
(05:21):
Jennifer and her whereabouts thefollowing morning, Thursday,
March 17th at 8:00 AM ascheduled ultrasound appointment
for Jennifer came and went.
There were no calls to theoffice to cancel or reschedule.
It was simply a nohow,completely odd for someone like
Jennifer who had been veryexcited about her first
(05:41):
pregnancy.
She had dreamed about becoming amother since she was a little
girl and missing a crucialappointment regarding this new
and exciting chapter was outtacharacter for her that same day.
About an hour after Jennifer'smissed ultrasound appointment
employees at a local dentalpractice noticed an abandoned
vehicle that was parkedsuspiciously in the back of
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their parking lot.
The dental office was located at4,100 independent strive located
in north white hall township,Pennsylvania.
The employee reported theabandoned vehicle to the local
police department.
And within a few minutes afterthe call was made, local police
arrived on the scene to checkout the abandoned vehicle.
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As police walked around the car,they noticed the rear passenger
window was smashed, but yetthere was no shattered glass on
the ground by the car wanting toknow who the rightful owner of
the car was.
They ran the license plate.
The vehicle came back registeredto Jennifer Snyder.
The same Jennifer whose roommatewas concerned about her.
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Whereabouts the same Jenniferwho missed her first ultrasound
appointment, where was JenniferSnyder and who was responsible
for her disappearance withJennifer's name and address in
hand, police made their way overto Jennifer's apartment located
on Cresler road in upperMcKenzie township.
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When state troopers knocked onthe door, they were greeted by
Hillary Jennifer's roommate.
One of the first questions theyasked Hillary was if she
considered Jennifer missing andHillary responded, yes in her
interview with Pennsylvaniastate troopers.
Hillary explained that the dayprior Wednesday, March 16th,
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2011 was Jennifer's day off.
And she was going out to lunchwith her boyfriend of three
years.
David, Adam Rapaport.
And he was gonna come back totheir apartment and spend the
night with her as explainearlier, David was the head
veterinarian at maple Hillsveterinary hospital.
The same vet practice thatJennifer and Hillary both worked
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at as veterinary technicians.
David's been described as quietand somewhat introverted, but
still very well liked by theclients of the practice.
Long time child, childhoodfriends of David described him
as the kind of kid who walkedthe line of the law and would
never do anything to embarrasshis family.
His classmates at Pennveterinary school, where he
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graduated from in 2008,described him as quiet and
serious and not wrapped up inthe school's social scene.
Jennifer and David were firstintroduced to each other.
When Jennifer worked with Davidat the veterinary practice,
David was one of the attendingveterinarians at the time.
And Jennifer often worked sideby side with David as his
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veterinary assistant, afterworking together late one night,
a kiss between the two startedtheir romance.
Jennifer described David to herfamily as someone who had a
similar passion regardinganimals, he was witty and
charming and he often wouldleave her love notes and her
lunch bag or on her phone.
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Sometimes he would leave dailyaffirmations of love that would
make Jennifer smile.
Initially, Jennifer was notlooking for an office romance,
but eventually David's wi charmwon her over.
Jennifer was head over heels inlove with David and gave him her
all.
But there was one catch.
David was married with thelocation of Jennifer's apartment
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being next to the building thathoused the veterinary practice.
It became convenient forJennifer and David to carry on
their affair.
After spending intimate timetogether, David would then make
the 50 minute drive back to hishome that he shared with his
wife, Elizabeth, who at the timewas a seventh grade teacher at
east Northington middle schoolin Norristown, Pennsylvania,
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over the course of theirrelationship.
Jennifer's mother, Patricia andsister Justine stated that David
made false promises to Jenniferregarding if and when he was
going to leave Elizabeth, hiswife of six years, according to
Jennifer, David had told her hewas leaving Elizabeth, but her
mental health issues held up theseparation as the years went on,
(10:09):
both Patricia and Justine becameincreasingly concerned that the
relationship wasn't as positiveas Jennifer made it out to be
both Patricia and Justine feltthat David was using Jennifer.
And eventually he would go backto his wife, Elizabeth, but
Jennifer assured them that shewas mentally strong and was able
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to handle the relationship shehad with David.
Jennifer stuck it out with Davidbecause in her heart, she would
never be responsible forbreaking up a marriage unless
there was some sort of promisefrom David to prove his loyalty
to Jennifer.
David attended a family weddingwith her back in 2009, it was a
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relative of Jennifer's andaccording to Jennifer's family
and other people who hadattended the wedding, David
seemed happy to be there andacted if he did not have a wife
at home.
But David charade was slowlyunraveling, nearly two years
into their relationship.
Elizabeth had suspected Davidwas having an affair when she
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confronted him about it.
David had assured Elizabeth thathe had ended their relationship
with Jennifer, but she began tohave doubts on October 14th,
2009.
One of Elizabeth's friends hadtipped her off that they had
seen David and Jennifer togetherat the marital home.
As Elizabeth was driving intotheir development.
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She spotted David leaving theirneighborhood with another woman
in his minivan about two in themorning and followed them.
Elizabeth was enraged that Davidhad lied about ending his
relationship with JenniferElizabeth finally caught up with
them less than a mile away inthe parking lot of a we
supermarket near Landsdale,Pennsylvania, Elizabeth got out
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of her car, walked up to the vanand hit David several times.
She then grabbed Jennifer by thearm and both fell to the
blacktop.
As a result of the assault.
Elizabeth was charged withharassment.
Eventually Elizabeth pled guiltylater that month in district
court.
After that incident, David andElizabeth spent some time apart,
(12:16):
but eventually got back togetherafter they both agreed to work
on their six year marriage,Elizabeth herself was very open
to friends and family about themarital difficulties, citing
reasons of knowing each othersince they were children and
supporting David while heattended veterinary school, the
couple decided to give itanother try.
(12:36):
They even went as far asplanning a party to celebrate
their new beginning.
But even though David hadpromised Elizabeth that the
affair with Jennifer was over,he never stopped having an
affair with her.
And as a result, he began tomake false promises of the
future to Jennifer.
He even went to go as far as topredict how many children he and
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Jennifer would have together.
It was these promises thatJennifer took signs of David.
Finally leaving Elizabeth tostart a new life with her
because of this.
Jennifer started to share theirrelationship on social media and
updated their relationshipstatus on Facebook to quote in a
relationship.
Some of the people close toJennifer, including her mother,
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Patricia and sister Justine werestunned to see that she would
make this announcement, butJennifer's family and friends
also took this as a move thatDavid was finally going to
divorce Elizabeth and eventuallyend up with her during the last
year of their affair and forreasons that are still unknown.
David left his position at mapleHills veterinary hospital and
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began working at Harleysvilleveterinary hospital, which was
closer to his home in upper Gwenwood, Pennsylvania, shortly
after David's departure frommaple Hills veterinary hospital,
Jennifer found out she was abouteight weeks pregnant.
When David found out about thepregnancy, he flipped out and
insisted that Jennifer shouldhave an abortion, which she flat
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out refused for about a week.
He ignored Jennifer's messages.
Then about a week later, Davidcontacted Jennifer and said he
had a change of heart and wasexcited about the pregnancy.
David told Jennifer he wanted towork it out with her and he was
gonna get his own place so thatthey could live together with
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the new baby.
On the morning of March 16th,2011, David sent a text message
to Jennifer stating they shouldgo to lunch together.
And that he was planning asecret Renez VU and had a
surprise for her.
Afterwards.
David was to spend the night ather apartment because of their
argument about the pregnancy.
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Jennifer was looking forward tospending time with David and
thought the surprise could havebeen something like an actual
engagement ring.
As Hillary's interview went onwith the state troopers.
She actually got a text messagefrom Jennifer saying she was
staying over with her mother,not David as originally planned
the text message read Dr.
(15:03):
has to work tonight.
So I'm going to my mom's.
Thanks.
Hi, shortly after getting thattext from Jennifer, Hillary got
another text message.
This text message was from DavidRapaport himself asking, will
you ask Jen to call me later?
I don't think her cell is on orworking Hillary message back.
(15:24):
I will do that.
When did you last talk to her?
There was nothing else fromDavid.
According to Hillary, David hadtexted Jennifer once he was on
the Pennsylvania turnpike, theroute he took when he worked at
maple Hills veterinary hospital.
But other than that, Hillarytold state troopers during David
and Jennifer's entire three yearrelationship.
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He had never texted Hillarybefore and she felt it was odd
that he texted her.
After talking with Hillarypolice returned to the parking
lot behind the dental office toofficially search Jennifer's car
upon inspecting the interior ofthe car.
Police were shocked to discovera great amount of blood in the
passenger seat, brain tissue anda skull fragment in the vehicle.
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The entire car smelled likebleach and two nine millimeter
bullet casings were found on theback seat.
Later that day after theirinterview with Hillary
authorities went to David andElizabeth's home in upper Gwen
would PA and spoke to thecouple.
Initially David told police hehadn't had any recent contact
with Jennifer later on in theinterview.
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David admitted he had arelationship with Jennifer, but
didn't want his wife Elizabethto know during the investigation
at his home police asked forDavid's permission to search his
car.
And he consented while a statetrooper was with David at the
rear of his 2005 Toyota Solera.
They asked him where the gunwas.
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David then pointed to the trunkwhile David was being questioned
about the contents of his car.
He asked detectives to ask hiswife Elizabeth, to leave.
While David opened the trunk ofthe car, a detective asked
Elizabeth to leave, but she toldhim she wanted to see what was
inside the trunk.
When police searched the trunk,they found a black gun case with
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the Glock model, 17 ninemillimeter handgun inside at the
time of the discovery of thehandgun.
David voluntarily handed overthe nine millimeter bullets also
in the car where baby wipeswould smeared blood on the lid
of the box.
Police asked him if there wasanything in his car, belonging
to Jennifer and David said, hedidn't know.
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David told police, he bought thewipes at target, and then he
forgot to use them to clean thedashboard of his car in David's
car.
Police also found a backpackwhich contained a roll of duct
tape with what appeared to beblood on it.
Police immediately returned allthe items to the car till they
could get an actual searchwarrant.
Detectives asked David tocontinue the interview at the
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state police barracks that Davidended the interview by asking
for his lawyer with theinformation from Hillary
interviews, with David himselfand the evidence from Jennifer's
abandoned car authoritiesofficially declared Jennifer
missing on the evening of March17th, 2011, immediately local
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state police began to ask forthe public's help and finding
Jennifer and stated she may beendangered on Friday, March
18th, 2011.
Police used helicopters tosearch the area surrounding
Jennifer's car at 9:45 AM atrooper in the helicopter
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spotted a large black object onthe ground.
The object was located in awooded Meine and the Drexler
nature preserve in north whitehall township, Pennsylvania.
It turned out it was Jennifer'sbody.
Her body was wrapped in aPhiladelphia Eagles fleece
blanket soaked in bleach.
She was then wrapped in blackgarbage bags, secured with duct
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tape near her body was shatteredglass consistent with her rear
passenger's car window beingshattered also found on the
ground was one nine millimeterbullet casing on Saturday, March
20th, 2011.
Just one day after findingJennifer's body, an autopsy was
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performed on Jennifer Jennifer'sautopsy showed she died of
multiple gunshot wounds and herdeath was ruled.
A homicide.
Jennifer had been shot threetimes.
Two wounds showed that the gunwas put directly in her mouth.
When the trigger was pulled, thethird wound showed she was shot
in the middle of her back withthe bullet exiting through her
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abdomen.
Sadly, the autopsy showed shewas two months pregnant with a
boy later that afternoon, afterJennifer's autopsy was complete.
Police obtained a search warranton David's car, inside his car.
They found Jennifer's cell phoneunderneath the passenger seat,
as well as a box of blackgarbage bags, consistent with
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what was wrapped around herbody.
Ballistic tests showed that thenine millimeter handgun and
bullets recovered from David'scar proved to be the murder
weapon and bullets used to killJennifer.
When police reviewed videosurveillance tapes, they learned
Jennifer's vehicle was parkedbehind the dental office at 1:19
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PM on Wednesday.
And they saw a man fittingDavid's description.
Get out of the driver's side ofthe car.
The man then walked to a nearbydumpster and placed some items
inside before running from thearea.
When police went to the dumpsterin person, they found an empty
bottle of bleach with blood onit, a bleach soaked towel and a
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plastic bag with documents fromJennifer's OB GYN with the help
of David's credit card recordsand surveillance video from
target that was located in northWales.
Pennsylvania police said that onWednesday, March 16th, 2011, the
morning of Jennifer's murder.
David had visited target atpurchase bleach, baby wipes,
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duct tape, and a towel onTuesday, March 22nd, 2011, six
days after cowardly murderingJennifer and her unborn son,
David was arrested outside hisparents' idyllic home located in
Montgomery county, Pennsylvania.
He was held without bail and wascharged with the homicide of
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Jennifer Snyder and the homicideof her unborn son, former
colleagues and classmates ofDavid's were shocked to learn of
his involvement in the brutalmurder of Jennifer neighbors and
the upper Gwen woodneighborhood, where he and
Elizabeth resided said David wasseen walking the couple's
beagles throughout theneighborhood, but rarely said
(21:52):
more than hello.
Fellow colleagues who workedwith David described him as very
nice and easy to work with.
At the end of the day, he seemedlike an obedient husband who
went home to his wife, Elizabetheach day.
Not at any time, did anyone geta bad vibe from him?
David was also serious about hisroots and Judaism, and he was
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remembered as a quiet sweet guyby other people at his synagogue
on a trip to Israel members ofhis synagogue.
Remember the trip as beingextremely emotional and David
showed concern about everyone'swellbeing on the trip on
December 8th, 2011 after monthsof delays, and six months after
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Elizabeth Rappaport filed fordivorce.
David Rapaport pled guilty totwo counts of first degree
murder in the deaths of Jenniferand their unborn son.
In addition to pleading guilty,David also agreed to waive all
of his appeal rights.
His guilty plea allowed him toavoid the death penalty.
His attorney stated that theguilty plea was in David's best
(22:58):
interest after months ofresearch and consultation with
various experts on the case, intheir case against David
prosecutors claim that David waslivid that Jennifer was pregnant
with his child and immediatelybegan to plot Jennifer's murder
at least a month before theevent actually took place a
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month prior, David had purchaseda brand new Glock nine
millimeter handgun.
The morning of Lisa's murder.
David went to a shooting rangenear his home and practiced with
his new Glock nine millimeterpistol.
He purchased earlier that month.
He also bought bleach and atowel and baby wipes at a local
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target store.
He then texted Jennifer and toldher he wanted to spend the day
with her and had a specialsurprise for her.
After they had lunch.
David drove Jennifer and her carto Drexler game preserve a
county owned park that is hometo hikers, mountain bikers,
(24:01):
hunters, and fisherman given theday of the week, time of the day
and time of the year, the roadand area that the game preserve
is on is less traveled, whichmade it the perfect place for
David to murder Jennifer anddump her body in a ravine all
the while going unnoticed,unknown to prosecutors and
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everyone else is how David wasable to put a pistol in
Jennifer's mouth and succeededin shooting her twice in the
mouth.
If that wasn't enough, he shother a third time through the
middle of her back.
The autopsy showed that Jenniferwas eight to 12 weeks pregnant
with a boy.
She planned on naming Ethan DNAtesting proved that David was
(24:50):
the father of Jennifer's unbornson.
After David was done killingJennifer, he removed her body
from her car, wrapped her bodyin a bleach soaked Philadelphia
Eagles, fleece blanket, anddumped her body along game
preserve road in north whitehall township, Pennsylvania
police said David then drove tothe independent drive location
(25:14):
and left Jennifer's car parkedin the rear of the dental office
parking lot.
He then tossed a bottle ofbleach and her OB GYN paperwork
in a dumpster located in therear of the building, near her
car in the same parking lot.
He then made the 50 minute tripback to his marital home that he
shared with his wife, Elizabeth,an upper Gwen would Pennsylvania
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and carried on as normal.
When police went to his home toquestion him about Jennifer and
her whereabouts, he initiallydenied having any contact with
her.
But when he was confronted withwhat detectives knew from
talking with Jennifer'sroommate, Hillary, he admitted
he denied having contact withher because he was hiding the
(25:57):
affair from his wife.
Elizabeth.
When Patricia Jennifer's motherwas able to address David in
court, she outed him as aspineless human and a murderer
who had destroyed her life.
She ended her statement byletting the court and judge know
that her wounds may never heal.
Jennifer's godmother.
Paula Siller called David acoward and Hillary Jennifer's
(26:22):
former roommate said she neverbelieved David's lies.
And she hated how Jennifer ledhim into her life.
Before his sentencing, Davidapologized to Jennifer's family,
as well as his wife, David saidhe would regret killing Jennifer
for the rest of his life.
David then told the court, hewasn't the cold hearted,
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emotional creep who committedsuch an act of madness
describing himself ashardworking, compassionate, and
smart.
He told the court, he waswilling to pay for his crime
unimpressed.
With David's words.
The judge stated that David metevery definition of malice and
said his actions were cruel andinhumane.
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He was sentenced to two terms oflife in prison.
One life sentence for Jenniferand one life sentence for their
unborn son, both sentences arewith no chance of parole.
Although Jennifer's family wererelieved that David took
responsibility andaccountability for the death of
Jennifer and her unborn son,Jennifer's family and friends
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were still visibly shaken withanger and pain at David's
sentencing.
If one were to take a good hardlook at David Rapaport's life,
we would say he appeared.
He wanted to make his familyhappy by relying heavily on his
faith, exceeding theexpectations of him by being a
successful veterinarian andmarrying a certain person such
(27:50):
as Elizabeth.
Having an unsuccessful marriagethat resulted in divorce would
have been a big disappointmentto his family.
So David took the cowardly wayout.
He played both his wife,Elizabeth and Jennifer David
took advantage of Jennifer'sopenness and vulnerability.
And most of all, he tookadvantage of her open heart and
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willingness to love Jennifer'sapartment adjacent to the
veterinary practice was thecherry on top for David.
He was able to conveniently havean illicit affair without having
any immediate suspicion from hiswife, Elizabeth, if it wasn't
Jennifer, it would be someoneelse.
Jennifer was simply upon inDavid Rapaport's evil game in
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December, 2012, David Rapaportfiled a post-conviction relief
appeal on his own.
And a hearing was held July30th, 2013.
After which Lehigh county judgeSteinberg denied David's request
to appeal his conviction.
David then appealed thatdecision to the state superior
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court, arguing he did not give averbal on the record waiver of
his appeal rights in an opinionwritten by judge Steinberg.
He stated that David Rappaport'sonly claimed to appeal his case
was that he did not give theverbal waiver.
David Rapaport completed thewritten form, waving his rights
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and was asked on the record byjudge Steinberg.
If he reviewed the form,understood it.
And if he had any questionsabout it, according to the court
transcript, David Rapaport saidhe reviewed the waiver.
Understood it.
It did not have any questionsabout it.
David Rapaport said he reviewedthe waiver, understood it and
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did not have any questions aboutit.
The court agreed with judgeSteinberg's opinion and denied
David Rapaport's appeal.
The court felt throughout theproceedings.
It was evident to David that hewould be spending the rest of
his life in jail without furtherreview by any court.
David Rapaport is currentlyserving his two life sentences
(30:02):
at Hanoi state prison in Chuhill, county, Pennsylvania.
This concludes this week'sepisode and thank you so much
for tuning in and listening andremember to tune in next week
for more true crime talk withoutthe valley girl squa.
They say, you can tell a lot about a person and
how one treats animals, evenGandhi was quoted as saying the
greatness of a nation and itsmoral progress can be judged by
the way its animals are treated,being passionate about animals.
Isn't just limited todomesticated ones, such as dogs
and cats.
(00:24):
It's caring enough to make sureyour bird feeders are filled or
putting peanuts out for thesquirrels that visit your yard.
These indeed are true tale, talesigns of a true animal lover.
When an animal lover seeks out apartner, it's no surprise.
We look for someone who lovesanimals as much as us, usually
(00:45):
both people's mutual love foranimals will usually overlap
with other interests.
And after all one's relationshipwith animals is a good
prediction in determining one'sability to love.
So it was no surprise thatJennifer Snyder a 27 year old
veterinary technician fell forDavid Adam.
(01:06):
Rapaport the head veterinarianwhere they both worked.
Typically veterinarians possessempathy, sympathy, and
compassion.
For those who cannot speak forthemselves, all characteristics
we look for in a mate, butsometimes the outside appearance
of good is massed by evil.
And it's usually done by someoneclose to us, a person we least
(01:30):
likely would suspect the devilwho disguises themselves is
charming, but secretly lives adouble life using many along the
way and plotting evil for a longtime undetected.
You're listening to departed inPenn, Kentucky, episode three,
playing both sides.
(01:52):
The case of Jennifer Snyder, 27year old Jennifer Snyder was
(02:26):
described by family and friendsas intelligent kind, loving
giving.
And most of all, a very peacefulperson.
Jennifer's mother Patriciadescribes Jennifer as somewhat
of an animal whisperer and hermain purpose in life was caring
and saving animals, especiallyones that had very little time
(02:50):
left Jennifer's passion crossedover to her career where she
went to school, became afull-time veterinary technician,
her life revolved around theveterinary practice she worked
at and the animals she saved,including her dog, Arthur and
her horse Margie.
And when she wasn't riding ortaking care of Margie, she loved
(03:11):
showing other horses andcompeted with them as well.
So when Jennifer failed to checkin with her roommate and close
friend, Hillary Shavan, it wasno surprise that Hillary became
alarmed.
Not only were Hillary andJennifer roommates, they were
close friends and coworkers,both working as veterinary
technicians at maple hillveterinary hospital in Mckenjie
(03:34):
Pennsylvania for the past fewmonths or so they shared the two
bedroom apartment that wasadjacent to the building that
housed the animal hospital.
Since the girls were close, itwas not unusual for both girls
to check in with each other ontheir days off.
The Dayton question wasWednesday, March 16th, 2011.
(03:55):
It was Jennifer's day off.
And she had left the apartmentaround 11:00 AM to go to lunch
with her boyfriend, David, AdamRapaport.
Jennifer had been lookingforward to this day for quite
some time.
She and David were expectingtheir first child together.
And the following day, March18th, 2011, the couple planned
(04:16):
to attend Jennifer's firstultrasound appointment together.
Then afterwards David was gonnaspend the night at Jennifer and
Hillary's apartment.
Initially Justine Jennifer'ssister was to go to her
appointment with her, butJennifer said David was gonna
come.
So there was no need for Justineto attend to celebrate.
(04:39):
David had planned a specialsurprise for Jennifer, somewhat
of a Ron Nevo.
He told her throughout the day,Hillary continually texted and
called Jennifer to see where shewas.
And if she was okay, Jenniferhad never responded.
And that struck Hillary as odd,Jennifer was known to be
(04:59):
extremely responsible andcourteous.
Hillary always got a response.
When Hillary reached out toJennifer, even Arthur Jennifer's
dog had been acting anxious,pacing back and forth all day,
waiting for her to come back aself-described warrior.
Hillary had a funny feeling,something wasn't right with
(05:21):
Jennifer and her whereabouts thefollowing morning, Thursday,
March 17th at 8:00 AM ascheduled ultrasound appointment
for Jennifer came and went.
There were no calls to theoffice to cancel or reschedule.
It was simply a nohow,completely odd for someone like
Jennifer who had been veryexcited about her first
(05:41):
pregnancy.
She had dreamed about becoming amother since she was a little
girl and missing a crucialappointment regarding this new
and exciting chapter was outtacharacter for her that same day.
About an hour after Jennifer'smissed ultrasound appointment
employees at a local dentalpractice noticed an abandoned
vehicle that was parkedsuspiciously in the back of
(06:03):
their parking lot.
The dental office was located at4,100 independent strive located
in north white hall township,Pennsylvania.
The employee reported theabandoned vehicle to the local
police department.
And within a few minutes afterthe call was made, local police
arrived on the scene to checkout the abandoned vehicle.
(06:25):
As police walked around the car,they noticed the rear passenger
window was smashed, but yetthere was no shattered glass on
the ground by the car wanting toknow who the rightful owner of
the car was.
They ran the license plate.
The vehicle came back registeredto Jennifer Snyder.
The same Jennifer whose roommatewas concerned about her.
(06:48):
Whereabouts the same Jenniferwho missed her first ultrasound
appointment, where was JenniferSnyder and who was responsible
for her disappearance withJennifer's name and address in
hand, police made their way overto Jennifer's apartment located
on Cresler road in upperMcKenzie township.
(07:10):
When state troopers knocked onthe door, they were greeted by
Hillary Jennifer's roommate.
One of the first questions theyasked Hillary was if she
considered Jennifer missing andHillary responded, yes in her
interview with Pennsylvaniastate troopers.
Hillary explained that the dayprior Wednesday, March 16th,
(07:34):
2011 was Jennifer's day off.
And she was going out to lunchwith her boyfriend of three
years.
David, Adam Rapaport.
And he was gonna come back totheir apartment and spend the
night with her as explainearlier, David was the head
veterinarian at maple Hillsveterinary hospital.
The same vet practice thatJennifer and Hillary both worked
(07:56):
at as veterinary technicians.
David's been described as quietand somewhat introverted, but
still very well liked by theclients of the practice.
Long time child, childhoodfriends of David described him
as the kind of kid who walkedthe line of the law and would
never do anything to embarrasshis family.
His classmates at Pennveterinary school, where he
(08:18):
graduated from in 2008,described him as quiet and
serious and not wrapped up inthe school's social scene.
Jennifer and David were firstintroduced to each other.
When Jennifer worked with Davidat the veterinary practice,
David was one of the attendingveterinarians at the time.
And Jennifer often worked sideby side with David as his
(08:38):
veterinary assistant, afterworking together late one night,
a kiss between the two startedtheir romance.
Jennifer described David to herfamily as someone who had a
similar passion regardinganimals, he was witty and
charming and he often wouldleave her love notes and her
lunch bag or on her phone.
(08:59):
Sometimes he would leave dailyaffirmations of love that would
make Jennifer smile.
Initially, Jennifer was notlooking for an office romance,
but eventually David's wi charmwon her over.
Jennifer was head over heels inlove with David and gave him her
all.
But there was one catch.
David was married with thelocation of Jennifer's apartment
(09:22):
being next to the building thathoused the veterinary practice.
It became convenient forJennifer and David to carry on
their affair.
After spending intimate timetogether, David would then make
the 50 minute drive back to hishome that he shared with his
wife, Elizabeth, who at the timewas a seventh grade teacher at
east Northington middle schoolin Norristown, Pennsylvania,
(09:45):
over the course of theirrelationship.
Jennifer's mother, Patricia andsister Justine stated that David
made false promises to Jenniferregarding if and when he was
going to leave Elizabeth, hiswife of six years, according to
Jennifer, David had told her hewas leaving Elizabeth, but her
mental health issues held up theseparation as the years went on,
(10:09):
both Patricia and Justine becameincreasingly concerned that the
relationship wasn't as positiveas Jennifer made it out to be
both Patricia and Justine feltthat David was using Jennifer.
And eventually he would go backto his wife, Elizabeth, but
Jennifer assured them that shewas mentally strong and was able
(10:29):
to handle the relationship shehad with David.
Jennifer stuck it out with Davidbecause in her heart, she would
never be responsible forbreaking up a marriage unless
there was some sort of promisefrom David to prove his loyalty
to Jennifer.
David attended a family weddingwith her back in 2009, it was a
(10:49):
relative of Jennifer's andaccording to Jennifer's family
and other people who hadattended the wedding, David
seemed happy to be there andacted if he did not have a wife
at home.
But David charade was slowlyunraveling, nearly two years
into their relationship.
Elizabeth had suspected Davidwas having an affair when she
(11:10):
confronted him about it.
David had assured Elizabeth thathe had ended their relationship
with Jennifer, but she began tohave doubts on October 14th,
2009.
One of Elizabeth's friends hadtipped her off that they had
seen David and Jennifer togetherat the marital home.
As Elizabeth was driving intotheir development.
(11:31):
She spotted David leaving theirneighborhood with another woman
in his minivan about two in themorning and followed them.
Elizabeth was enraged that Davidhad lied about ending his
relationship with JenniferElizabeth finally caught up with
them less than a mile away inthe parking lot of a we
supermarket near Landsdale,Pennsylvania, Elizabeth got out
(11:53):
of her car, walked up to the vanand hit David several times.
She then grabbed Jennifer by thearm and both fell to the
blacktop.
As a result of the assault.
Elizabeth was charged withharassment.
Eventually Elizabeth pled guiltylater that month in district
court.
After that incident, David andElizabeth spent some time apart,
(12:16):
but eventually got back togetherafter they both agreed to work
on their six year marriage,Elizabeth herself was very open
to friends and family about themarital difficulties, citing
reasons of knowing each othersince they were children and
supporting David while heattended veterinary school, the
couple decided to give itanother try.
(12:36):
They even went as far asplanning a party to celebrate
their new beginning.
But even though David hadpromised Elizabeth that the
affair with Jennifer was over,he never stopped having an
affair with her.
And as a result, he began tomake false promises of the
future to Jennifer.
He even went to go as far as topredict how many children he and
(12:57):
Jennifer would have together.
It was these promises thatJennifer took signs of David.
Finally leaving Elizabeth tostart a new life with her
because of this.
Jennifer started to share theirrelationship on social media and
updated their relationshipstatus on Facebook to quote in a
relationship.
Some of the people close toJennifer, including her mother,
(13:20):
Patricia and sister Justine werestunned to see that she would
make this announcement, butJennifer's family and friends
also took this as a move thatDavid was finally going to
divorce Elizabeth and eventuallyend up with her during the last
year of their affair and forreasons that are still unknown.
David left his position at mapleHills veterinary hospital and
(13:41):
began working at Harleysvilleveterinary hospital, which was
closer to his home in upper Gwenwood, Pennsylvania, shortly
after David's departure frommaple Hills veterinary hospital,
Jennifer found out she was abouteight weeks pregnant.
When David found out about thepregnancy, he flipped out and
insisted that Jennifer shouldhave an abortion, which she flat
(14:02):
out refused for about a week.
He ignored Jennifer's messages.
Then about a week later, Davidcontacted Jennifer and said he
had a change of heart and wasexcited about the pregnancy.
David told Jennifer he wanted towork it out with her and he was
gonna get his own place so thatthey could live together with
(14:22):
the new baby.
On the morning of March 16th,2011, David sent a text message
to Jennifer stating they shouldgo to lunch together.
And that he was planning asecret Renez VU and had a
surprise for her.
Afterwards.
David was to spend the night ather apartment because of their
argument about the pregnancy.
(14:42):
Jennifer was looking forward tospending time with David and
thought the surprise could havebeen something like an actual
engagement ring.
As Hillary's interview went onwith the state troopers.
She actually got a text messagefrom Jennifer saying she was
staying over with her mother,not David as originally planned
the text message read Dr.
(15:03):
has to work tonight.
So I'm going to my mom's.
Thanks.
Hi, shortly after getting thattext from Jennifer, Hillary got
another text message.
This text message was from DavidRapaport himself asking, will
you ask Jen to call me later?
I don't think her cell is on orworking Hillary message back.
(15:24):
I will do that.
When did you last talk to her?
There was nothing else fromDavid.
According to Hillary, David hadtexted Jennifer once he was on
the Pennsylvania turnpike, theroute he took when he worked at
maple Hills veterinary hospital.
But other than that, Hillarytold state troopers during David
and Jennifer's entire three yearrelationship.
(15:45):
He had never texted Hillarybefore and she felt it was odd
that he texted her.
After talking with Hillarypolice returned to the parking
lot behind the dental office toofficially search Jennifer's car
upon inspecting the interior ofthe car.
Police were shocked to discovera great amount of blood in the
passenger seat, brain tissue anda skull fragment in the vehicle.
(16:08):
The entire car smelled likebleach and two nine millimeter
bullet casings were found on theback seat.
Later that day after theirinterview with Hillary
authorities went to David andElizabeth's home in upper Gwen
would PA and spoke to thecouple.
Initially David told police hehadn't had any recent contact
with Jennifer later on in theinterview.
(16:31):
David admitted he had arelationship with Jennifer, but
didn't want his wife Elizabethto know during the investigation
at his home police asked forDavid's permission to search his
car.
And he consented while a statetrooper was with David at the
rear of his 2005 Toyota Solera.
They asked him where the gunwas.
(16:52):
David then pointed to the trunkwhile David was being questioned
about the contents of his car.
He asked detectives to ask hiswife Elizabeth, to leave.
While David opened the trunk ofthe car, a detective asked
Elizabeth to leave, but she toldhim she wanted to see what was
inside the trunk.
When police searched the trunk,they found a black gun case with
(17:13):
the Glock model, 17 ninemillimeter handgun inside at the
time of the discovery of thehandgun.
David voluntarily handed overthe nine millimeter bullets also
in the car where baby wipeswould smeared blood on the lid
of the box.
Police asked him if there wasanything in his car, belonging
to Jennifer and David said, hedidn't know.
(17:34):
David told police, he bought thewipes at target, and then he
forgot to use them to clean thedashboard of his car in David's
car.
Police also found a backpackwhich contained a roll of duct
tape with what appeared to beblood on it.
Police immediately returned allthe items to the car till they
could get an actual searchwarrant.
Detectives asked David tocontinue the interview at the
(17:58):
state police barracks that Davidended the interview by asking
for his lawyer with theinformation from Hillary
interviews, with David himselfand the evidence from Jennifer's
abandoned car authoritiesofficially declared Jennifer
missing on the evening of March17th, 2011, immediately local
(18:19):
state police began to ask forthe public's help and finding
Jennifer and stated she may beendangered on Friday, March
18th, 2011.
Police used helicopters tosearch the area surrounding
Jennifer's car at 9:45 AM atrooper in the helicopter
(18:40):
spotted a large black object onthe ground.
The object was located in awooded Meine and the Drexler
nature preserve in north whitehall township, Pennsylvania.
It turned out it was Jennifer'sbody.
Her body was wrapped in aPhiladelphia Eagles fleece
blanket soaked in bleach.
She was then wrapped in blackgarbage bags, secured with duct
(19:03):
tape near her body was shatteredglass consistent with her rear
passenger's car window beingshattered also found on the
ground was one nine millimeterbullet casing on Saturday, March
20th, 2011.
Just one day after findingJennifer's body, an autopsy was
(19:24):
performed on Jennifer Jennifer'sautopsy showed she died of
multiple gunshot wounds and herdeath was ruled.
A homicide.
Jennifer had been shot threetimes.
Two wounds showed that the gunwas put directly in her mouth.
When the trigger was pulled, thethird wound showed she was shot
in the middle of her back withthe bullet exiting through her
(19:46):
abdomen.
Sadly, the autopsy showed shewas two months pregnant with a
boy later that afternoon, afterJennifer's autopsy was complete.
Police obtained a search warranton David's car, inside his car.
They found Jennifer's cell phoneunderneath the passenger seat,
as well as a box of blackgarbage bags, consistent with
(20:09):
what was wrapped around herbody.
Ballistic tests showed that thenine millimeter handgun and
bullets recovered from David'scar proved to be the murder
weapon and bullets used to killJennifer.
When police reviewed videosurveillance tapes, they learned
Jennifer's vehicle was parkedbehind the dental office at 1:19
(20:29):
PM on Wednesday.
And they saw a man fittingDavid's description.
Get out of the driver's side ofthe car.
The man then walked to a nearbydumpster and placed some items
inside before running from thearea.
When police went to the dumpsterin person, they found an empty
bottle of bleach with blood onit, a bleach soaked towel and a
(20:49):
plastic bag with documents fromJennifer's OB GYN with the help
of David's credit card recordsand surveillance video from
target that was located in northWales.
Pennsylvania police said that onWednesday, March 16th, 2011, the
morning of Jennifer's murder.
David had visited target atpurchase bleach, baby wipes,
(21:11):
duct tape, and a towel onTuesday, March 22nd, 2011, six
days after cowardly murderingJennifer and her unborn son,
David was arrested outside hisparents' idyllic home located in
Montgomery county, Pennsylvania.
He was held without bail and wascharged with the homicide of
(21:31):
Jennifer Snyder and the homicideof her unborn son, former
colleagues and classmates ofDavid's were shocked to learn of
his involvement in the brutalmurder of Jennifer neighbors and
the upper Gwen woodneighborhood, where he and
Elizabeth resided said David wasseen walking the couple's
beagles throughout theneighborhood, but rarely said
(21:52):
more than hello.
Fellow colleagues who workedwith David described him as very
nice and easy to work with.
At the end of the day, he seemedlike an obedient husband who
went home to his wife, Elizabetheach day.
Not at any time, did anyone geta bad vibe from him?
David was also serious about hisroots and Judaism, and he was
(22:14):
remembered as a quiet sweet guyby other people at his synagogue
on a trip to Israel members ofhis synagogue.
Remember the trip as beingextremely emotional and David
showed concern about everyone'swellbeing on the trip on
December 8th, 2011 after monthsof delays, and six months after
(22:35):
Elizabeth Rappaport filed fordivorce.
David Rapaport pled guilty totwo counts of first degree
murder in the deaths of Jenniferand their unborn son.
In addition to pleading guilty,David also agreed to waive all
of his appeal rights.
His guilty plea allowed him toavoid the death penalty.
His attorney stated that theguilty plea was in David's best
(22:58):
interest after months ofresearch and consultation with
various experts on the case, intheir case against David
prosecutors claim that David waslivid that Jennifer was pregnant
with his child and immediatelybegan to plot Jennifer's murder
at least a month before theevent actually took place a
(23:20):
month prior, David had purchaseda brand new Glock nine
millimeter handgun.
The morning of Lisa's murder.
David went to a shooting rangenear his home and practiced with
his new Glock nine millimeterpistol.
He purchased earlier that month.
He also bought bleach and atowel and baby wipes at a local
(23:41):
target store.
He then texted Jennifer and toldher he wanted to spend the day
with her and had a specialsurprise for her.
After they had lunch.
David drove Jennifer and her carto Drexler game preserve a
county owned park that is hometo hikers, mountain bikers,
(24:01):
hunters, and fisherman given theday of the week, time of the day
and time of the year, the roadand area that the game preserve
is on is less traveled, whichmade it the perfect place for
David to murder Jennifer anddump her body in a ravine all
the while going unnoticed,unknown to prosecutors and
(24:25):
everyone else is how David wasable to put a pistol in
Jennifer's mouth and succeededin shooting her twice in the
mouth.
If that wasn't enough, he shother a third time through the
middle of her back.
The autopsy showed that Jenniferwas eight to 12 weeks pregnant
with a boy.
She planned on naming Ethan DNAtesting proved that David was
(24:50):
the father of Jennifer's unbornson.
After David was done killingJennifer, he removed her body
from her car, wrapped her bodyin a bleach soaked Philadelphia
Eagles, fleece blanket, anddumped her body along game
preserve road in north whitehall township, Pennsylvania
police said David then drove tothe independent drive location
(25:14):
and left Jennifer's car parkedin the rear of the dental office
parking lot.
He then tossed a bottle ofbleach and her OB GYN paperwork
in a dumpster located in therear of the building, near her
car in the same parking lot.
He then made the 50 minute tripback to his marital home that he
shared with his wife, Elizabeth,an upper Gwen would Pennsylvania
(25:37):
and carried on as normal.
When police went to his home toquestion him about Jennifer and
her whereabouts, he initiallydenied having any contact with
her.
But when he was confronted withwhat detectives knew from
talking with Jennifer'sroommate, Hillary, he admitted
he denied having contact withher because he was hiding the
(25:57):
affair from his wife.
Elizabeth.
When Patricia Jennifer's motherwas able to address David in
court, she outed him as aspineless human and a murderer
who had destroyed her life.
She ended her statement byletting the court and judge know
that her wounds may never heal.
Jennifer's godmother.
Paula Siller called David acoward and Hillary Jennifer's
(26:22):
former roommate said she neverbelieved David's lies.
And she hated how Jennifer ledhim into her life.
Before his sentencing, Davidapologized to Jennifer's family,
as well as his wife, David saidhe would regret killing Jennifer
for the rest of his life.
David then told the court, hewasn't the cold hearted,
(26:42):
emotional creep who committedsuch an act of madness
describing himself ashardworking, compassionate, and
smart.
He told the court, he waswilling to pay for his crime
unimpressed.
With David's words.
The judge stated that David metevery definition of malice and
said his actions were cruel andinhumane.
(27:05):
He was sentenced to two terms oflife in prison.
One life sentence for Jenniferand one life sentence for their
unborn son, both sentences arewith no chance of parole.
Although Jennifer's family wererelieved that David took
responsibility andaccountability for the death of
Jennifer and her unborn son,Jennifer's family and friends
(27:27):
were still visibly shaken withanger and pain at David's
sentencing.
If one were to take a good hardlook at David Rapaport's life,
we would say he appeared.
He wanted to make his familyhappy by relying heavily on his
faith, exceeding theexpectations of him by being a
successful veterinarian andmarrying a certain person such
(27:50):
as Elizabeth.
Having an unsuccessful marriagethat resulted in divorce would
have been a big disappointmentto his family.
So David took the cowardly wayout.
He played both his wife,Elizabeth and Jennifer David
took advantage of Jennifer'sopenness and vulnerability.
And most of all, he tookadvantage of her open heart and
(28:14):
willingness to love Jennifer'sapartment adjacent to the
veterinary practice was thecherry on top for David.
He was able to conveniently havean illicit affair without having
any immediate suspicion from hiswife, Elizabeth, if it wasn't
Jennifer, it would be someoneelse.
Jennifer was simply upon inDavid Rapaport's evil game in
(28:37):
December, 2012, David Rapaportfiled a post-conviction relief
appeal on his own.
And a hearing was held July30th, 2013.
After which Lehigh county judgeSteinberg denied David's request
to appeal his conviction.
David then appealed thatdecision to the state superior
(28:57):
court, arguing he did not give averbal on the record waiver of
his appeal rights in an opinionwritten by judge Steinberg.
He stated that David Rappaport'sonly claimed to appeal his case
was that he did not give theverbal waiver.
David Rapaport completed thewritten form, waving his rights
(29:18):
and was asked on the record byjudge Steinberg.
If he reviewed the form,understood it.
And if he had any questionsabout it, according to the court
transcript, David Rapaport saidhe reviewed the waiver.
Understood it.
It did not have any questionsabout it.
David Rapaport said he reviewedthe waiver, understood it and
(29:41):
did not have any questions aboutit.
The court agreed with judgeSteinberg's opinion and denied
David Rapaport's appeal.
The court felt throughout theproceedings.
It was evident to David that hewould be spending the rest of
his life in jail without furtherreview by any court.
David Rapaport is currentlyserving his two life sentences
(30:02):
at Hanoi state prison in Chuhill, county, Pennsylvania.
This concludes this week'sepisode and thank you so much
for tuning in and listening andremember to tune in next week
for more true crime talk withoutthe valley girl squa.
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