A man found guilty of bludgeoning his friend to death with a hammer in 2021 was sentenced to life behind bars.
Trenton Adams of Avalon will spend the rest of his life in prison with no possibility of parole after a jury found him guilty of capital murder in a trial held in Ellis County this week. The 31-year-old was arrested in connection to the March 2021 death of his friend, 29-year-old Jordan Von Hoffman, after forensic evidence was found at the murder scene and more pointed in his direction.
“This was an extraordinarily brutal crime,” said Ellis County District Attorney Ann Montgomery in a statement. “I am pleased that justice was served for Jordan and his family. I am also thankful that Trenton Adams will never walk freely in Texas again.”
Von Hoffman’s body, which showed several signs of severe trauma, was found by concerned family members in a shed located on a property in the 6900 block of Ensign Road in Ennis. He had been hog-tied, wrapped in plastic and a tarp, stuffed inside a trash can, and covered in paint. Inside a second trash can, a hammer, gloves, and other items were found — all of which Adams was seen purchasing the day before on surveillance footage from a nearby Home Depot.
Adams had absconded by the time an arrest warrant was issued by Ellis County Sheriff’s Office. While on the lam, he called 911 dispatchers, wrote to prosecutors, and posted various messages on Facebook confessing to the murder and making claims as to the motive, according to a statement from the Ellis County District Attorney’s Office. These motives ranged from the killing having been ordered by a South American cartel to it having been an act of Satanic worship.
Ultimately, investigators think that the murder had been motivated by Von Hoffman having been intimate with Adams’ girlfriend.
In Dallas, the murder rate rose by 15% last year compared to the year prior, with a total of 246 reports logged, according to the City’s crime analytics dashboard. So far, in 2024, 17 criminal homicides have been logged as of January 29. The vast majority of these victims were either black or Hispanic males, and their median age was 25.5 years old.
Although the Dallas Police Department has been furthering its efforts to curb violent crime through community partnerships and more, these efforts have been hampered by a significant staffing shortage. The department has only around 3,000 officers, whereas a City report recommends 4,000 to ensure public safety in Dallas.
Moreover, DPD’s budget will be just $654 million this fiscal year. City officials will spend far less on police than the leaders of other high-crime municipalities, such as New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago.
