Woman's death at storage facility caused by gunshot but not ruled homicide yet

Staff reports 6:24 a.m.


Woman's death at storage facility caused by gunshot but not ruled homicide yet

The body of Jessica Purslow was found inside a storage locker at Rochester Self Storage on South Main Street (Rochester Voice photo; inset, Facebook photo)

ROCHESTER - The woman whose body was found inside a Rochester self-storage facility over the weekend died of a single gunshot wound, but whether she died at the hands of someone else or the fatal wound was self-inflicted has not been determined.

The state Attorney General's Office released the results of an autopsy on Sunday, saying 45-year-old Jessica Purslow died from a single gunshot wound, but stopped short of ruling the death a homicide, which is when one person's death is caused by another.

On Monday, Purslow's son, Trisstian Purslow, eulogized his mom on his Facebook page, which also contains a link to a fund-raising page to help with final expenses.

In part the post reads, "I couldn't have had a better and more loving mom. RIP."

Rochester Police found the body of Purslow around midnight Saturday when they answered a call for an open storage unit at Rochester Self Storage at 112 South Main St.

The gated facility is tucked away behind Walgreen's and People's United Bank.

Police and the AG's office have not released whether any weapons were found at the scene or the location of the gunshot wound.

Anyone who was in the area of Rochester Self Storage this past weekend or who has any information regarding this incident to include the recent whereabouts and activities of Ms. Purslow is asked to contact Detective Pat Emerson at the Rochester Police Department at (603) 330-7128.