LAKEVILLE, Minn. (TCN) — A 25-year-old man has been found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the death of his pregnant sister and her unborn child in 2024.
According to the Dakota County Attorney’s Office, family members of Bethany Israel, 30, grew concerned after she went to have dinner at the home of her brother, Jack Joseph Ball, on May 23, 2024, and was not heard from for several hours. Their mother arrived at Ball’s home that evening at about 11 p.m. and witnessed Ball “tear out of the house.”
Ball and Israel’s mother went into the home and saw a large quantity of blood. She dialed 911, and responding officers found several bloody tools and dismembered body parts inside the home, per the county attorney’s office. A neighbor then dialed 911, stating that they saw a man on home security footage putting a body part on their porch. Ball was found in a neighbor’s backyard with a self-inflicted wound on his neck, and he was taken to a hospital.
An autopsy revealed Israel was about 17 to 18 weeks pregnant at the time of her death, which was ruled to be the result of complex homicidal violence, per the county attorney’s office.
The Dakota County Attorney’s Office announced Ball was found guilty on Oct. 20 of two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of Israel and her unborn child. The case was tried in two phases. In the first phase, Ball pleaded guilty on Jan. 21, and in the second phase, he asserted a defense of mental illness.
KARE reports Judge Bryce A.D. Ehrman ruled Ball did not meet the state’s standard for a mental illness defense. That ruling came after a four-day trial in May and June solely focused on whether Ball met that standard. The court found Ball had documented his desire to kill his sister in February 2024, and on the day she was killed, he lured her to his home and hit her with a hammer.
In a criminal complaint obtained by People, Ball had written journal entries wherein he described Israel as “no longer innocent” due to her pregnancy.
KMSP reports the judge wrote, “In his journals, [Ball] fantasized repeatedly about killing, dismembering, along with engaging in necrophilia and cannibalism. … [Ball] explained later that he enjoyed the process of journaling, as it helped him think things through. This is evident by the detailed plans for murder that are found in his journals and the fact that he acted in accordance with those plans on May 23, 2024.”
Israel’s obituary describes her as someone who “embodied love in every sense. She never spoke negatively, always sought to help others, and wore a perpetual smile. Her light touched the kids she coached, the friends she played with, and even the newcomers she welcomed onto the court. Bethany will forever be remembered as a beacon of kindness, compassion, and unwavering love.”
CBS News reports Ball’s sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 23. He faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison under Minnesota law.
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