‘BETRAYED’

Woman Guilty of Killing Her Friend With Eye Drops

Prosecutors say Jessy Kurczewski was motivated by greed.

A Wisconsin woman wept in court Tuesday as she was convicted of fatally poisoning her friend with eye drops. Jessy Kurczewski, 39, was found guilty of first-degree intentional homicide as well as theft in relation to the 2018 death of beautician Lynn Hernan, 62. Prosecutors alleged that Kurczewski took almost $300,000 from Hernan in the two years before her death. Hernan was found unconscious in her home surrounded by pill bottles, and her death was initially ruled to be an overdose, with Kurczewski telling authorities she believed Hernan had been suicidal. The investigation was then reopened when a toxicological report found Hernan had a fatal dose of tetrahydrozoline, the main chemical in eye drops. After the verdict Tuesday, deputy district attorney Abbey Nickolie said Kurczewsk “betrayed Lynn out of greed.” Kurczewski now faces mandatory life in prison for the homicide charge.