Jesserae Beck, 42, from Palmyra, Nebraska, is still grappling with the physical and emotional aftermath of a horrific assault and kidnapping by her ex-boyfriend, Christopher Collins. After enduring severe abuse and nearly being blown up in a gas-filled house, Beck’s survival story is one of strength and resilience, despite the lifelong scars left by the trauma.
Beck, who spent two weeks in the hospital, is now left with metal pins in her ribs, a partially collapsed lung, and lasting head trauma. The violence began on September 24, 2023, when Collins attacked Beck after they had reconciled following a previous assault in August. She had filed for a protection order after that incident, in which Collins had allegedly choked and beaten her.
Still, Beck returned to him, seeking closure, only to be trapped in a dangerous situation. That night, after delivering a home-cooked meal to Collins, Beck went missing. She later woke up in one of Collins’ rental homes, disoriented and unable to remember the assault.
“He actually thought I was dead, essentially, and he didn’t know what to do,” Beck recalled. She was beaten and bloody, forced to lie next to him as he told her about the attack. “Listening to a man tell you what he did to you, and you have to lie next to him for several hours… that was hard for me to process,” Beck said.
As the night unfolded, Collins threatened to kill her and himself. Beck, in a desperate attempt to buy time, refused to slit his throat as he demanded. He then claimed he would take her for help the next day and turn himself in. However, Beck sensed something more sinister at play. “In the back of my head, I knew what he had done,” she said. “He had zero intention of both of us making it out.”
Beck’s fears were confirmed when loud bangs and a strong smell of gas filled the air. It wasn’t a gas explosion, but the sound of a SWAT team breaking in to rescue her. Beck was pulled from the home, severely injured, and wrapped in a sheet before being taken to safety.
Collins, who was trying to strangle her at the time of the SWAT entry, now faces several felonies, including kidnapping and terroristic threats, and is awaiting his next court date on November 6. Beck’s story, marked by her harrowing experience and profound strength, serves as an inspiration to other women facing domestic violence.
Reflecting on her ordeal, Beck said, “I try to stay positive, because if you continue to live in the negative and wonder the whys, you’re going to stay there forever. And I don’t want to stay there forever. My biggest goal is to keep going and be my motivation for other women. You’re not alone — there’s help out there.”