James Harris: Difference between revisions
imported>Gul The Darkness Adding categories |
imported>.GIFfany Ramirez-McSkirmish cleanup |
||
| Line 3: | Line 3: | ||
==Background== | ==Background== | ||
As a child Harris suffered violent beatings at the hands of his father, [[James Washington]], who also abused his mother.<ref name=philly2>[http://www.philly.com/philly/news/crime/Convicted-killer-of-Drexel-grad-student-hangs-self-in-Graterford-cell.html Convicted killer of recent Drexel grad hangs self in Graterford cell] - The Inquirer</ref> He suffered multiple head wounds, being shot twice in the head | As a child Harris suffered violent beatings at the hands of his father, [[James Washington]], who also abused his mother.<ref name=philly2>[http://www.philly.com/philly/news/crime/Convicted-killer-of-Drexel-grad-student-hangs-self-in-Graterford-cell.html Convicted killer of recent Drexel grad hangs self in Graterford cell] - The Inquirer</ref> He suffered multiple head wounds, being shot twice in the head and receiving an arrow in the eye.<ref name=philly1>[http://www.philly.com/philly/news/crime/Maintaining-innocence-W-Phila-handyman-gets-life-for-rape-murder-of-Drexel-graduate-student.html Maintaining innocence, handyman gets life for rape-murder of Drexel grad student] - The Inquirer</ref> He dropped out of high school.<ref name=philly2/> From age 13 to 18 he was detained at reform school St. Gabriel's Hall, where his parents sent him.<ref name=nbcp>[https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/Brother-of-Handyman-Accused-of-Drexel-Grads-Murder-Thats-the-Billion-Dollar-Question-Why-318705381.html 'We Were Just Bad Kids': Brother of Handyman Accused of Raping, Murdering Drexel Grad Opens Up] - NBC Philadelphia</ref> In 1982, shortly after returning from St. Gabriel's Hall,<ref name=nbcp/> he killed Washington and spent around five years imprisoned for voluntary manslaughter,<ref name=philly2/> out of a sentence of three to seven years.<ref name=cnn/> After his release he picked up convictions for drugs crimes and trespass.<ref name=trian>[https://thetriangle.org/news/former-drexel-handyman-held-on-trial-for-murder-and-rape-of-grad-student/ Former Drexel handyman held on trial for murder and rape of grad student] - The Triangle</ref> Police called him a career criminal; he had faced allegations of sexual assaults, robberies, and burglaries.<ref name=cnn>[http://edition.cnn.com/2015/07/24/us/philadelphia-handyman-charged-in-murder/index.html Apartment building's former handyman accused of raping, murdering tenant] - CNN</ref> | ||
By 2015, at the age of 56, he was going by the name James Camp and employed as a handyman at an apartment at 50th and Locust, near West Philadelphia.<ref name=trian/> His mother died 43 days prior to the murder,<ref name=philly2/> and shortly before the act he was fired.<ref name=trian/> Harris received a ban from the premises and an eviction from his home three doors from Wright.<ref name=cnn/> | By 2015, at the age of 56, he was going by the name James Camp and employed as a handyman at an apartment at 50th and Locust, near West Philadelphia.<ref name=trian/> His mother died 43 days prior to the murder,<ref name=philly2/> and shortly before the act he was fired.<ref name=trian/> Harris received a ban from the premises and an eviction from his home three doors from Wright.<ref name=cnn/> | ||
| Line 16: | Line 16: | ||
==Legal process== | ==Legal process== | ||
Harris was committed for trial on October 13, 2015 by which time he was claiming a consensual sexual relationship with Wright and that after having sex with her an unknown assailant had killed her.<ref name=trian/> He struck a deal that dropped the death penalty in exchange for waiving | Harris was committed for trial on October 13, 2015 by which time he was claiming a consensual sexual relationship with Wright and that after having sex with her an unknown assailant had killed her.<ref name=trian/> He struck a deal that dropped the death penalty in exchange for waiving his right to a jury trial, but rejected a plea deal offering a sentence of 50 to 100 years in custody.<ref name=philly2/> As a result in March 2017 he faced a 2½ day trial before Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Sandy L.V. Byrd and was convicted of murder, rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and burglary.<ref name=abc7/> He received a mandatory life without parole sentence as the murder charge was in the first degree, plus a consecutive total of 30 to 60 years for the other crimes.<ref name=philly2/> At sentencing he remained defiantly claiming Wright was his lover and her loss was as painful as that of his mother.<ref name=philly1/> | ||
==Aftermath== | ==Aftermath== | ||
| Line 36: | Line 36: | ||
[[Category:Family of Victim]] | [[Category:Family of Victim]] | ||
[[Category:Sadists]] | [[Category:Sadists]] | ||
[[Category:Psychopath]] | [[Category:Psychopath]] | ||
[[Category:Homicidal Maniac]] | [[Category:Homicidal Maniac]] | ||