Opinion ID: 2600609
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Kesha's Birth and Early Life

Text: Kesha Gurke was born on February 14, 1994. Her mother, Jeanette Hill, had met Kesha's father, Jeff Gurke, in junior high school, and had just turned 18 years old when she gave birth to Kesha. Hill's relationship with Jeff Gurke ended in May 1995, and he left town shortly thereafter. Defendant, who was 30 years old, met Hill at her 19th birthday party in January 1995. Although Hill's relationship with defendant was initially platonic, in June 1995, she and Kesha moved into defendant's apartment in Paso Robles, a one-room converted garage, where they would live until Kesha's death four months later on October 10. About a month after moving in together, Hill and defendant developed a romantic relationship. Defendant was sent to jail for about a month and a half during the summer, but returned to the apartment in August. When Hill and Kesha first moved in, defendant got along very well with Kesha. But after defendant's incarceration and return, Kesha appeared not to like him anymore. Defendant's conduct towards Kesha also changed. Kesha's whining and crying got on defendant's nerves and he responded by yelling or swatting her on the buttocks. Hill objected to this kind of discipline, but defendant stated that this was how he believed she should be raised. Kesha became less comfortable with defendant as time went on. Whenever she heard defendant's car drive up, she would cling to her mother. When defendant entered the room, Kesha would just sit and stare into space.