Convicted felon sentenced to 2 life terms after guilty verdict in 1992 sexual assault case in Virginia Beach

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — A 65-year-old man has been sentenced to 2 life terms after being found guilty in a 1992 sexual assault case in Virginia Beach.

A circuit court judge sentenced Ronny L. Jernigan Monday to 3 life terms in prison with one life term suspended. In September 2021, Jernigan was found guilty by a jury on charges of forcible sodomy, abduction with intent to defile, and robbery.

The conviction stems from a cold case from 1992 that went unsolved until 2016.

On November 6, 1992, a 21-year-old woman left a Video Express store near the intersection of Wesleyan Drive and Newtown Road and was walking to her car when Jernigan grabbed her from behind, held a knife to her throat, and forced her into the car. 

While holding the knife in his right hand, Jernigan drove the woman to a dark parking lot nearby and sexually assaulted her, then kicked her out of the car and drove away.

The victim ran to a nearby house for help and called the police. She then went to the hospital, where forensic evidence was collected as part of a Physical Evidence Recovery Kit (PERK). The evidence was taken to the police department where it was secured until it could be sent out for testing.

24 years later, in November of 2016, a new method of DNA testing created a DNA profile from the 1992 sample. The profile was run through the Virginia and National DNA Databanks which matched the profile of Ronny Jernigan.

At that time, Jernigan was incarcerated in Florida on a robbery charge. Police got a search warrant for Jernigan’s DNA and sent it to DFS for testing. The DNA profile from the victim’s PERK kit confirmed a match to Jernigan.