Jessica Lunsford
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| Jessica Marie Lunsford | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 6, 1995 Gastonia, North Carolina, United States |
| Died | February 27, 2005 Homosassa, Florida, United States |
Jessica Marie Lunsford (October 6, 1995 – February 27, 2005) was a nine-year-old girl who was abducted from her home in Homosassa, Florida on February 23, 2005, then raped and murdered, by 47-year-old John Couey. The media covered the investigation and trial of her killer extensively.
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[edit] Abduction, rape and murder
On 23 February 2005, Jessica disappeared after attending church. Couey later states that he entered Jessica's house through an unlocked door at about 3 a.m. He awoke Jessica, told her "Don't yell or nothing" and told her to follow him out of the house.[1]
Couey occupied a trailer along with two women, 100 yards away, at the time of Jessica's abduction.[2] He admitted in his videotaped and recorded deposition to sexually assaulting Jessica in his bedroom.[3] She was kept in his bed that evening, where he raped her again in the morning. Couey put her in his closet and ordered her to remain there, which she did as he reported for work at "Billy's Truck Lot".[1] Three days after he abducted her, Couey bound the child's wrists together with speaker wire, placed her in a garbage bag, placed the bag containing her inside another garbage bag, and buried her alive in a shallow grave, where she suffocated to death.
On March 19, 2005, police found Jessica's body at a residence located on West Sparrow Court, buried in a hole approximately 2 1/2' deep and 2' circular, covered with leaves. The body was removed from the ground and transported to the coroner's office. Her body had undergone "moderate" to "severe" decomposition and according to the publicly released autopsy reports was skeletonized on 2 fingers that Jessica had poked through the bags before suffocating to death. The coroner ruled that death would have happened even in best circumstances within 2-3 minutes from lack of oxygen.
[edit] Arrest of John Couey
After approximately three weeks of intense searching for the young girl around the area of her home, John Evander Couey, age 47,[4] was arrested in Savannah, Georgia for an outstanding warrant of marijuana possession, but he was released after questioning because it was only a local warrant. He was later arrested in Augusta, Georgia.
On March 18, 2005, Couey confessed to having kidnapped and murdered Jessica Lunsford. On March 19, 2005 police found Jessica's body buried in a hole, covered with leaves, near a residence on West Sparrow Court.
A judge ruled on June 30, 2006 that Couey's confession was inadmissible in court and will not be heard by members of the jury. The decision was based on the fact that, at the time the confession was recorded, police had not granted Couey's repeated requests for access to a lawyer. It was ruled that all evidence collected after Couey's confession, including the recovery of Lunsford's body, will be allowed in court, as will incriminating statements made by Couey to investigators and a jail guard.[5]
On March 7, 2007, Couey was found guilty in Florida of all charges in relation to Jessica's death, including first degree murder, kidnapping, and sexual battery. On March 14, 2007, the jury in Couey's trial recommended the death penalty.
[edit] Jessica Lunsford Act
Following her death, her father Mark Lunsford pursued new legislation to provide more stringent tracking of released sex offenders. The Jessica Lunsford Act was named after her. It requires tighter restrictions on sex offenders (such as wearing electronic tracking devices) and increases prison sentences for some convicted sex offenders.[6] Jessica's Law refers to similar reform acts initiated by the states.
[edit] References
- ^ a b Bruno, Anthony. Jessica Lunsford: Death of a 9 year old", CourtTV CrimeLibrary
- ^ "Drifter says he held girl three days", CNN.com, 24 June 2005
- ^ Partial transcript of Video Confession of Couey, CNN.com
- ^ Perez, Mabel. " Judge throws out Couey confession", The Ocala Star Banner, 1 July 2006.
- ^ Ross, Jim. "Judge: Couey confession out" St. Petersburg Times, 30 June 2006.
- ^ Ramirez, Jessica. "The Abductions That Changed America", Newsweek, 29 January 2007, pp. 54–55.
