Sailor Pleads Guilty to Strangling 21 year-old Seaman Angelina Resendiz at Naval Station Norfolk, Faces 40 Years

Navy Petty Officer Jermiah Copeland pleaded guilty Monday to the unpremeditated murder of 21-year-old Seaman Angelina Resendiz, admitting in military court that he strangled the fellow sailor inside his barracks room at Naval Station Norfolk and later buried her body in a wooded area of Norfolk in 2025.

Copeland, who served alongside Resendiz aboard the destroyer USS James E. Williams, entered guilty pleas to five charges, including unpremeditated murder, obstruction of justice, aggravated assault by strangulation, indecent recording and making a false official statement.

Under the plea agreement, he faces a sentence of at least 40 years and two months in prison, a dishonorable discharge and reduction in rank.

During the hearing, Copeland described how Resendiz came to his barracks room on May 29, 2025, where the two drank alcohol and kissed, WTKR reported. He said she became upset after seeing a flash notification from his phone. According to his testimony, he knocked her to the ground, covered her mouth to keep her quiet and strangled her with both hands.

Copeland admitted he initially lied to investigators from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, telling them he had returned Resendiz to her room. He later transported her body in a suitcase and buried it in the Broad Creek area of Norfolk. Her remains were discovered on June 9, 2025.

As part of the plea deal, Copeland also admitted to misconduct involving other women while stationed aboard the USS Harry S. Truman in 2024, including secretly recording a woman in a bathroom stall and strangling another woman.

During a recess in proceedings, Resendiz's mother, Esmeralda Castle, met privately with Copeland and later told WHRO public media she forgave him. "I don't hate him," Castle said. "All I told him is you have life, right? I'm sorry, it's gonna be behind walls, but you still have life."

Castle has spent the past year criticizing the Navy's handling of her daughter's disappearance. Friends reported Resendiz missing after one sailor received what was described as a frantic late-night voicemail asking to be picked up. Despite those concerns, Resendiz was initially classified by Navy officials as absent without leave, or AWOL, before her body was found.

The handling of the case prompted calls for further investigation from Castle and lawmakers, including Rep. Vicente Gonzalez of Texas, who requested a review into whether failures occurred within Resendiz's chain of command.

Castle has since worked with advocacy groups and lawmakers to push for reforms related to military accountability and protections for women serving in the armed forces.