WSVN — Christopher Barrett: "She was so beautiful, she shined because she was so vibrant."
You don't have to know Julie Wills to know that she was a beautiful girl, but, if you knew her, you would also have realized she was a beautiful person.
Christopher Barrett: "I should have held her longer, you know, that last goodbye. I should have appreciated the friendship more because she was a very, very good friend to me."
Christopher talks about his friend in the past tense because Julie, who was a model trying to become a movie star, was murdered 11 years ago.
Scott Hanley: "The nature of the scene, it was a very bloody scene, appeared to an investigator that, you know, a struggle did take place in the duplex."
Julie had been stabbed several times. Apparently the killer left her alive. Her door was locked, and an ex-boyfriend found her the next morning.
Christopher Barrett: "He sees the blood, kicks the door, the sliding glass door and tears his calf, and so he bleeds over the entire crime scene."
His name was Steven Flacco. When they first met, Julie fell in love and moved from Texas to South Florida to be near him. But Christopher remembers Julie telling her the love affair had fizzled.
Christopher Barrett: "As far as I remember it was a friendly break-up."
Detectives interviewed Flacco but never charged him. They also suspect David Miller is now serving four life sentences for murdering two Boca women around the time Julie was killed. He was never charged with Julie's murder, and there were more suspects. Just as men were attracted to Julie, detectives were led to some of them.
Scott Hanley: "I think there are a lot of people who are still persons of interest, and he would be one of them along with a couple of other suspects, and, until we have somebody in custody, we will keep an open mind."
Was it a man who was attracted to Julie, an ex who had his heart broken by her? Detectives don't know, but Julie sensed she was in danger, the first clue came in a phone call to Christopher.
Christopher Barrett: "She said, 'If something happens to me, go to this safety deposit box, go to this bank and go to this safety deposit box.'"
Then a couple of days or the day before she was killed, another sign:
Christopher Barrett: "Thursday we have breakfast, and she hugged me in the parking lot as if it was goodbye, and I will never forget it because it was like what? What are you doing? I'm going to see you in three days or what ever."
Of course she never did, and Christopher could never find the safety deposit box Julie told her about. Detectives never found the murder weapon and, for 11 years, the case has gone unsolved.
Patrick Fraser: "Eleven years is a long time, memories fade, most people have forgotten about you, but not the cold case detectives and not Christopher and Julie's parents, who come from Texas once a year at the anniversary of her death to remember their wonderful daughter."
Christopher Barrett: "I'm hoping for a resolution, her parents, I can't imagine. I know what my heart carries, and I can't imagine what their heart carries, and they are the sweetest people. They are so dedicated. They never let this thing go, but, you know, when it comes to the yearly mass I'm the only one that is there. No one shows up."
No one shows up besides Christopher and Julie's parents, but someone knows who murdered her, and, by remaining silent, someone is helping her killer.
Scott Hanley: "Anytime someone is murdered like this, in such a brutal manner, you really want to find out the person responsible for it."
And, if you have a clue who that person is, Boca detectives would appreciate a call, a clue that might get Julie's killer the justice that is so deserved, and, if you know of a murder that you feel has been forgotten, give us a call. Don't forget, a lot of people are still Out for Justice.
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