JUSTICE FOR JULIE AND JOEL
Julie Rea Harper
USTICE FOR JULIE AND JOEL
On October 12, 1997, Joel Kirkpatrick, the 10-year-old son of Julie Rea Harper, was brutally stabbed to death in the middle of the night. His murder occurred in Lawrenceville, Illinois during a holiday weekend with his mother Julie. She was home from her studies in graduate education at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. Julie was prosecuted almost five years after the killing by prosecutors who insisted upon focusing soley upon her despite evidence of an outside assailant. She was ultimately convicted with no direct evidence that she committed the crime and sentenced to 65 years in prison. Tommy Lynn Sells, a serial killer who is on death row in Texas, has recently confessed to killing Joel. Substantial evidence exists to place Sells at the scene of the crime.
What follows are a few of the facts that illustrate Julie's innocence.
1. At 4:15 a.m. Julie awoke from a deep sleep, hearing a child's scream. Julie fought with Joel's killer as he ran out of the room and escaped from the house. She had no blood-spatter evidence on her to link her to the stabbing. She suffered deep bruises, a black eye, and a cut across her arm that required five stitches. Prosecutors say the wounds were self-inflicted.
2. Julie provided police with a rough description of the assailant. In addition, there are numerous witnesses who saw a stranger in the area who matched the suspect Julie described. Police disregarded or did not follow up on these reports.
3. On May 31, 2002, just weeks after Julie was sentenced, ABC 20/20 aired her story. Diane Fanning, a Texas author who was writing a book on serial killer Tommy Lynn Sells, watched the program. She corresponded with Sells, who despite being on lock down on death row, surprisingly admitted to the murder and was able to provide her with dates and information that substantiated his confession. Illinois authorities continue to dismiss Sells confession.
4. Further investifation by the Downstate Illinois Innocence Project has resulted in eyewitness testimoney that places Sells in the Lawrenceville Drive-In on Friday, October 10, 1997, and then buying a ticket to Winnemucca, Nevada on October 15, 1997. Winnemucca is significant because Texas Rangers can place Sells there and the timing was 10 years after he had committed a killing in that town.
5. The Downstate Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois at Springfield continues to develop significant evidence that proves Julie's innocence. Yet, Julie languished in Dwight Penitentiary, having to wait years for the legal process to clear her.
Julie needs your help NOW!!! For more information go to the website, http://www.justiceforjulieandjoel.org/ to read learn about and keep abreast of Julie’s case.
The Innocence Project also needs your help in order to continue to work on Julie’s case. Please send your donation made out to the Downstate Illinois Innocence Project to UIF: Downstate Illinois Innocence Project, UI Foundation, P.O. Box 3429, Champaign, IL 61826-9916 or click the "Make a Tax-deductible Contribution" link on the left.
