A Chilton man has been sentenced in Manitowoc County to a prison term for the 2010 murder of his former live-in girlfriend. Roger Rosenthal, 52, will spend 20 years behind bars followed by ten years of extended supervision for the killing of 39-year-old Michelle Jaeger in Chilton.
The death occurred on January 9th of 2010 and Rosenthal hid the body in the Manitowoc County town of Maple Grove. Jaeger’s body was found two weeks later near Hickory Hills Road in an area the killer had frequently used for hunting.
Court records show the man struck the victim in the back of the head with a cast iron frying pan as she slept. Authorities say when she awoke screaming he strangled her. Rosenthal was convicted of 2nd degree reckless homicide, strangulation and suffocation and hiding a corpse.
Manitowoc Circuit Court Judge Patrick Willis Thursday termed it one of the most serious cases of second degree murder he’s seen in his many years on the bench. Charges for crimes committed in Calumet County were consolidated with the one in Manitowoc County as part of a plea-agreement.
Prior to sentencing, Rosenthal asked for leniency, apologized to the Jaeger family and stated he is haunted by his actions that day.
Damon Ryan-WOMT