The Murder of Krista DiFrancesco

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In 2003, South Jersey became a serial predator’s hunting ground. Attempted assault escalated to murder when 24-year-old Krista DiFrancesco was discovered brutally raped and stabbed on her front lawn, just feet away from the home where her husband and baby were sleeping. It would take a year and two more assaults before police finally caught her killer.

This case centers on South Jersey, a region just north and west of the famous Jersey shoreline in the eastern United States. The crimes span Evesham Township in Burlington County and Waterford Township in Camden County, both considered suburbs of Philadelphia. Many residents here root for Philly sports teams and have somewhat of a Philly accent too. Evesham is one of the more densely populated areas within the region, with a population over 40,000. The neighborhoods where the 2003 assaults occurred were nice, middle class to upscale communities, with lake views, walking paths, and Homeowners’ Associations, making the crimes even more shocking.  

EARLIEST ASSAULTS

On February 2, 2003, a 37-year-old woman known only as “R. W.” was violently assaulted in broad daylight. A young man unsuccessfully attempted to pull the woman from her home, presumably to rape her. Fortunately, she was able to fight long enough and scream loud enough that her attacker fled.

At about 4:30 in the morning on March 29, a woman of about 50, referred to as “N. D.,” was walking toward her home. She passed a young man walking the opposite direction and politely nodded toward him. A moment later, the same man attacked her from behind, using a tire iron to beat her to the ground. 

N. D. broke her hand protecting her head from the blows. Once she was on the ground, N. D.’s attacker straddled her, unzipped both of their pants, and pulled hers down. N. D. grabbed the tire iron lying on the ground next to her and used it to strike her would-be rapist. She escaped to a nearby home for help as her attacker fled the scene – but not before he stole a bank envelope with $80 cash she dropped during the assault. 

Police in Waterford and Camden County, where both attacks occurred, investigated these as separate incidents with little to no media attention. They wouldn’t publicly connect the assaults for nearly a year, not until after the same attacker targeted three more victims in neighboring Evesham, Burlington County.  

DEADLY ESCALATION

On a Friday night, May 9, 2003, 24-year-old Krista DiFrancesco was enjoying a night out with friends. Krista was born and raised in Evesham, graduating from Cherokee High School in 1996. Krista worked as a clerk at a law firm, and in 2002, she married William DiFrancesco, a tree surgeon. William was also the bass player for a local country band called Bullseye, and Krista regularly came out to support him at performances. 

The couple welcomed a daughter named Kendalyn by late summer 2002, and their small family moved into a row of lakeside townhomes within the Kings Grant development of Evesham that winter. While Krista enjoyed her night out on May 9, William stayed at home with nine-month-old Kendalyn. It was unlikely that the DiFrancesos or their friends knew about the recent attacks in Waterford, since they weren’t widely publicized, or the attempted attack police responded to in their neighborhood earlier that night. 

Krista’s husband and daughter were fast asleep when she came home a little after 2:00 am. She parked her car, walked the 20 feet to her front door, and then turned around, startled by the sound of someone creeping up behind her. It was a young man, and he stabbed her 16 times in the head and upper body, including one stab wound to Krista’s left eye that penetrated her brain.

Some of Krista’s neighbors woke up when they heard screaming. Several of them looked out their windows but saw nothing suspicious. Others assumed the noise came from rowdy kids, which had been a problem recently. Many neighbors would later say they slept through the attack, including Krista’s husband. 

Once Krista stopped resisting, her attacker dragged her away from her front door and onto her lawn, where he removed some of her clothing, raped her, and left her for dead. Krista remained there for another four hours until her neighbor, Sean Lamon, came outside at about 6:45 am. He found Krista lying in a fetal position on the ground, covered in blood, rocking and rubbing her legs. 

Krista was hospitalized, and DNA collected from semen inside her body would eventually identify her attacker. Sadly, she never regained consciousness, and she wouldn’t be able to survive without life support. After Krista’s family made the painful decision to take her off life support, her husband, William, decided to wait until just after midnight on Monday, May 12 to do it. Sunday was Mother’s Day, and he didn’t want Krista to die then if he could help it. 

Police descended on the crime scene in the meantime, interviewing Krista’s neighbors and searching through their garbage. An expanded search of the woods and lake behind Krista’s home wouldn’t yield any clues or a murder weapon. 

CRITICAL REACTIONS

Krista’s violent murder shook the Evesham community, and the focus was on her neighbors’ actions – or inaction – as much as the murder itself. The Burlington County prosecutor’s office publicly criticized Krista’s neighbors for not calling the police when they heard screaming, and most Evesham residents agreed that her neighbors should have done more. 

It’s understandable why locals reacted with anger and fear, but it’s impossible to know if Krista’s neighbors could have intervened quickly enough to save her life, or if police could have apprehended her attacker had neighbors called 911 right away. This is what one neighborhood resident had to say in response to the intense criticism:  

“Imagine…the guilt that those people will carry for the rest of their lives. Imagine the burden everyone who lives here now feels, whether they heard anything or not. This is our loss, not yours. It is our pain, not yours. And everything we feel is nothing compared to the pain her family must be suffering. 

We have dealt with weeks of media accosting us and blocking our streets. We have dealt with accusations, nasty articles, gossip, and rumors. Kings Grant is a wonderful community, and I am proud to live here with all the wonderful, caring people who are my neighbors. Now leave us alone.”

INVESTIGATIVE AVENUES

While the Evesham community focused on public safety, creating new neighborhood watches, among other measures, detectives narrowed their investigative focus to Krista’s husband, William DiFrancesco. He was about 10 years older than Krista and had married her after she became pregnant with their first child. Perhaps William was feeling secret misgivings about his seemingly happy marriage, and Krista’s night out took him over the edge. 

Within a week of his wife’s murder, William had passed a polygraph and allowed police to examine his body for suspicious marks. He turned over some of his clothing, his computer, and truck, allowed his home to be searched, submitted a DNA sample, and sat for a videotaped interview. Officially, William wasn’t a suspect and police were just doing their due diligence to rule him out. But the attorney Krista had been working for before her murder agreed to represent William after a detective told him that he was their prime suspect. 

The police were tight-lipped when sharing details with the public. It would be months before they even confirmed that Krista was raped. They assured concerned residents that this was an isolated tragedy and not a random killing. 

ANOTHER ASSAULT

Less than six months into the investigation, the still unknown suspect struck again. On Monday, November 3, 2003, 46-year-old mother of two Nancy Clark was heading home after walking with her neighbor. She lived in the upscale Sanctuary neighborhood, about a 10-minute drive from the DiFrancesco home. 

When she was about 50 yards away from her home, Nancy passed a young man smoking a cigarette. The man suddenly attacked her from behind a moment later, stabbing Nancy repeatedly in her back and throat with a 7-8 inch serrated kitchen knife. Fortunately, she was able to fight back just enough to break free and run home, which scared her assailant away. 

Nancy got a good look at her attacker: he was young, in his late teens or early 20s, thin, no more than six feet tall, with brown hair. Police released a sketch from Nancy’s description two days later. Investigators searched for the man’s discarded cigarette butt and found it near the crime scene under six inches of leaves. Nancy’s attacker left his DNA behind on the cigarette butt and under Nancy’s fingernails as she fought him back.  

CONNECTIONS CONSIDERED

Even more neighborhood watches were created in the wake of the assault on Nancy Clark, and police increased their presence in communities throughout Evesham and Burlington County. Residents were convinced that Nancy’s attacker was the same man who killed Krista DiFranceco, and that the two Waterford assaults from earlier in the year might also be connected. Law enforcement assured the public that they were investigating potential links between all four cases, but they weren’t officially honing in on a single suspect. They still believed that Krista knew her killer and hadn’t ruled out her husband William just yet.  

DNA LEAVES NO DOUBT

In the spring of 2004, Burlington County investigators got their first major break. They first learned that DNA from Krista’s and Nancy’s cases matched, and then that they matched a known profile: 19-year-old Evesham resident Christopher Kornberger. 

Christopher dropped out of Cherokee High School in early 2003 and then secretly embarked on a mission to turn his deviant sexual fantasies into reality. He lived with his parents and two half brothers mere minutes from his victims. On May 7, 2003, three days before Krista DiFrancesco’s murder, police stopped Christopher for a traffic violation just a quarter-mile from her home. He told officers that he had been jogging in the area, and there was no basis for an arrest. 

Christopher had a history of stalking and attempted burglary in the area. In April 2004, just weeks before the DNA match, Christopher was put on probation from property damage charges he incurred after breaking a window screen and trying to enter a home where two women were alone inside. Police categorized the crime as an attempted burglary. He had a history of alcohol and drug abuse, including cocaine, angel dust, and ecstacy, and had started rehab programs twice but never finished. Otherwise, Christopher came from a stable family and maintained a healthy social life, with one friend calling him “the nicest kid I ever met.” 

As part of their investigation, police requested DNA samples from area men who matched the attacker’s description. Christopher Kornberger was on their list, and he voluntarily submitted a sample. After it matched the profile in evidence, police began surveilling him.  

CONFESSION

On May 13, 2004, around 8:30 pm, they followed Christopher as he left his house in his car, then pulled him over. Officers asked him to come with them to the police station so he could answer some questions, but they wouldn’t share specifics just yet. Christopher complied. 

The interview began a little after 9:00 pm. Christopher waived his Miranda rights and confirmed that he wasn’t under the influence of drugs or alcohol. He shared with detectives that he felt like he was “in a funk” and that he used drugs and alcohol to cope with what he called “girlfriend issues.” Questioning quickly moved to the assault and murder cases, and Christopher learned that his DNA connected him to two of the crimes. 

Christopher decided that he had no choice but to confess, and he occasionally cried as he did so. The tears, he said, were for his parents and friends who would be hurt when they learned the truth. He recalled all four assaults in graphic detail, providing details only the person responsible would know – how he chose, approached, and attacked each woman. He admitted feeling “bad” when he realized that Krista DiFrancesco was a mother and that he killed her on Mother’s Day weekend, but he came short of showing real remorse or taking responsibility. 

Christopher said there was “another person inside” him who gave him “crazy impulses” to harm and rape women. The urge had been with him since age 14, and it motivated him in 2003 to begin prowling local neighborhoods and targeting women for sexual attacks. Christopher hoped that the urge would eventually go away. “I deserve to die. I know I did it,” he told detectives that night. Christopher knew what he did was wrong and asked for help with his problems. He also clarified that “I never wanted to kill anyone…I just wanted to have sex.” 

EMERGING EVIDENCE

After videotaping his four-hour statement, police arrested Christopher on numerous charges stemming from Krista DiFrancesco’s murder and Nancy Clark’s assault. His bail was set at $1.1 million. The DNA evidence and confession were compelling enough, but investigators would turn up even more evidence against him in the coming weeks. 

A search of the Kornberger home yielded bloodstained clothing in the attic, which Christopher wore during his attack on Nancy. He either burned or buried clothing from the other assaults in the backyard. Police found the tire iron Christopher used to attack N. D. in Waterford back in March 2003 in the trunk of his parents’ car. Blood and tissue found in a socket opening on the tire iron contained a DNA profile matching N. D. 

Perhaps the most disturbing evidence recovered from the search was Christopher’s writings. In them, he graphically described harming women, slitting their throats, raping them, cutting their heads, and killing them. Christopher wrote about the sexual thrill these actions provided him. Although these writings were undated and didn’t mention specific victims, details within the writings matched details of the assaults. Handwriting analysis confirmed that Christopher was the author, and he used nearly identical language when describing his crimes to detectives.  

ADDITIONAL CHARGES

Within days of his arrest, Christopher Kornberger was officially charged with the two attacks in Waterford, and his bail was increased to $1.3 million. A psychiatric evaluation was ordered which concluded that Christopher is a sociopath. Maybe that’s why, in response to news of his arrest, one friend said, “he must have a side that no one knew.” 

During his confession, Christopher also revealed a fifth assault that police weren’t even investigating. It happened around 8:30 on the morning of August 3, 2003, less than three months after Krista DiFrancesco’s murder. Christopher ran into a 39-year-old jogger while driving past her. He claimed at the time that it happened while he looked for a cigarette and took his eyes off the road. Evesham resident Elisabeth Loetzner-Jung said the SUV deliberately drove into the wrong lane to hit her. She screamed for help, and a neighbor responded while Christopher remained on the scene. The incident was handled as a traffic accident, and Christopher was charged with careless driving. 

Now, Christopher admitted that he targeted Elisabeth, striking her with his vehicle in an attempt to disable her before raping her. He decided not to carry out the attack because of the neighbor who came out to help. Additional charges of aggravated assault, attempted sexual assault, and attempted kidnapping were added to the list, and Christopher’s bail was raised again, this time to $1.8 million. 

In March 2005, ten months after his arrest, Christopher Kornberger was formally indicted for capital murder plus fifteen more charges related to the three Evesham attacks on Krista DiFrancesco, Nancy Clark, and Elisabeth Loetzner-Jung. The State determined that the “aggravating factors” in Christopher’s case, including his “depravity” and “intention to inflict severe pain” on his victims, justified keeping the death penalty on the table. It was later dropped when New Jersey state law abolished executions, prior to Christopher going to trial. 

Despite having already confessed to the crimes, Christopher pleaded not guilty at arraignment. A combined trial would be held for the three Evesham attacks, and the two Waterford cases would be tried individually. Months of preparation, motions, and delays followed.

GUILTY, BUT FIGHTING IT

On the eve of his first trial for the assault of N. D. in Waterford, Christopher rejected a plea agreement that would have reduced his prison sentence. On January 10, 2007, the trial proceeded. The State played Christopher’s videotaped confession to the Camden County jury, edited so it only included references to his assault against N. D. When N. D. took the stand, she identified Christopher as her attacker and testified to her first-hand experience. 

Combined with the fact that the tire iron with N. D.’s blood, tissue, and DNA on it was found in the trunk of Christopher’s parents’ car, it only took the jury an hour to deliver a guilty verdict. Christopher was sentenced to 18 years for the assault, later reduced to nine due to a sentencing interpretation error, plus 18 months on weapons charges.

Christopher’s parents defended their son’s innocence, and so did he, vowing to learn about the judicial process and “fight until justice is served.” The closest thing he showed to remorse was at his sentencing hearing when he said, “I’m sorry she was the victim. I’m sorry I’m the one taking the fall.”  

PLEA PLOY

Christopher Kornberger’s next trial would be for the three Evesham attacks. But days before proceedings began, he entered a surprise guilty plea, admitting in court to assaulting Nancy Clark in November 2003. Christopher had planned to rape and kill her if she hadn’t been successful in fighting him off. He explained that a sexually impulsive alter ego he called “another me…another person” took control of his actions. 

Christopher would still go to trial for the charges related to Krista DiFrancesco and Elisabeth Loetzner-Jung, and sentencing for all three cases would be handled together afterward. Christopher’s guilty plea turned out to be a legal tactic – it limited what Nancy Clark could testify about at trial. The court would not allow “inflammatory evidence” of past crimes, meaning the jury wouldn’t hear about his recent conviction in N. D.’s March 2003 assault either. 

GUILTY AND GONE FOR GOOD

The trial began in late February 2008, more than four years after the Evesham attacks occurred. Christopher Kornberger’s defense presented three key arguments: the DNA evidence was contaminated, his confession was coerced, and some witness sightings don’t match his description, pointing to an unknown suspect. 

The judge allowed the jury to hear all the DNA evidence and allowed testimony from an expert who confirmed that investigators’ sample was reliable. Burlington County police didn’t record the first two and a half hours of Christopher’s May 2004 interrogation because they were following standard procedure – they only taped a suspect’s statement for the record. The judge saw no evidence of coercion in the four-hour recording and allowed the jury to watch an edited version of it, approved by the defense, during the trial as well. And because there was so much physical and circumstantial evidence linking Christopher to these crimes and no alternative suspect, any descriptions not matching him were explained as faulty eyewitness memory. 

On March 20, 2008, a jury of eight women and four men deliberated less than four hours before finding Christopher guilty on a total of 14 counts in the three Evesham attacks. He now faced a life sentence. After hearing the verdict, Christopher’s parents told the press that there is “more to the story,” adding “we continue to support Christopher…our love for him is unconditional.” 

Christopher Kornberger was sentenced to life in prison plus 51 years, effectively a 126-year sentence. New Jersey law requires that he serve 85% of the sentence – about 107 years – before he is eligible for parole. Christopher showed no emotion as the judge referred to him as “a danger to society” and “one of the most dangerous criminals I have ever come across” in his 35-year career. Nancy Clark told reporters, “I hope he is as scared as we were scared when we were attacked.” 

Less than two weeks later, on July 14, 2008, Christopher entered another surprise guilty plea, this time for assaulting R. W. in Waterford back in February 2003. It was the first attack in Christopher’s spree, and his plea cleared the last of the remaining charges against him. There was no legal advantage in this action, but it did provide some closure to the victim, families, and communities involved. Fifteen more years were added to his sentence.  

LAST DITCH APPEALS

Christopher appealed the rulings in all five cases in 2011. While he correctly argued that the judge made minor errors when instructing the jury on charges, the court determined that it wouldn’t result in a not guilty verdict if the instructions were corrected. Essentially, these were definitions of how many “substantial steps” legally constitute the definition of an “attempt.” The evidence in all cases made it clear that Christopher intended to rape and lethally harm the women.  

Christopher again contended that his videotaped confession was coerced by police and shouldn’t have been allowed into evidence, but the court found no supporting proof of this. He wanted DNA testimony thrown out too, questioning the testing method’s reliability. However, the method he questioned wasn’t mentioned at trial, and even if it were, its reliability was legally accepted. 

Even less successful was Christopher’s argument that his videotaped confession and the video’s transcript were improperly redacted. The court pointed out that Christopher’s defense agreed to the redactions and that they concealed mental problems and sexual compulsions that would have been prejudicial, not helpful, to the defense he presented at trial. Christopher thought these portions were critical in proving mental defect, but he wasn’t trying an insanity defense, so those portions were deemed irrelevant. 

The court did agree with Christopher on one point, stating that the prosecutor’s “summary statements came perilously close to crossing the line between fair comment and improper appeal to jurors’ emotions.” Regardless, his defense didn’t object at the time, and like the jury instructions, it didn’t change the outcome of the trial. 

In 2015, Christopher unsuccessfully appealed for post-conviction relief. This time, he argued that his trial attorney was ineffective. He believed that his defense should have argued insanity or diminished capacity, even though no evidence or expert reports supported those claims. While he was diagnosed as a sociopath, that doesn’t meet the legal criteria of an insanity defense – he still knew right from wrong and was capable of rational action. Christopher also thought that, due to local publicity, his trial should have been moved outside of Burlington County, or a foreign jury should have been brought in. The court disagreed. Christopher took his appeals to the State Supreme Court, but they declined to hear his case. 

IMMEASURABLE COST

Christopher Kornberger’s impulses cost him his freedom – he was imprisoned at age 19 and will stay there for the rest of his life – but that’s nothing compared to what he stole. A 24-year-old woman lost her life, and her daughter grew up without a mother. The other four women he assaulted lost their sense of security. The family, friends, and loved ones of all five women suffered immeasurably too. Christopher’s family, friends, and loved ones are also victims of his crimes, in a way that doesn’t garner as much sympathy or support. The formerly safe communities of Waterford and Evesham wrestled with fear, while neighbors of the victims wrestled with the guilt of what more they could have done to prevent the assaults. There is no doubt that Christopher would have continued attacking South Jersey women if his surviving victims and investigators hadn’t stopped him for good. 

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES