# 255: Eli Hart

An episode of [Morbidology](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1463979546), 6 May 2024, 45 min.

Audio: https://prefix.up.audio/s/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/s.gum.fm/s-610c47a4222ada0024acb2d8/pscrb.fm/rss/p/prfx.byspotify.com/e/tracking.swap.fm/track/2IMk17EdnEqyRhJTIpIU/claritaspod.com/measure/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/59469711/morbidology_255_eli_hart.mp3

Police in Orono, Minnesota, received a report of a vehicle on the road with a smashed back windscreen and a missing tyre on the 20th of May, 2022. When officers responded to the scene and pulled the car over, they immediately noticed blood in the back seat, and on the driver’s hands… SPONSORS: EZ Melts: EZ Melts are fast-melting, sugar free wonders that dissolve on your tongue, giving you all the essential nutrients in a package that tastes like a treat. Receive a free 3 month supply of Vitamin D3 with your first order at: https://try.ezmelts.com/morbidology Nutrafol: Hair thinning affects approximately 1 in 2 women, but you’re not alone. Nutrafol is the leading dermatologist recommended hair growth supplement. Get $10 off and free shipping with the code “MORBIDOLOGY” at: https://nutrafol.com/ EarnIn: EarnIn is an app that allows you to access your paycheck whenever you want. Just download the app, EarnIn, and make sure to type in "Morbidology" under PODCAST when you sign up! SHOW NOTES - https://morbidology.com/morbidology-the-podcast-255-eli-hart PATREON - https://www.patreon.com/morbidology YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/morbidology Audio Credit: Epidemic Sound Evening of Chaos - Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Empty Reflections - ErikMMusic - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgq4SPKHlyI A Mothers Sacrifice - OurMusicBox - https://ourmusicbox.com/ Dark Tranquility - Anno Domini Beats - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6mBav72Ak Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/morbidology--3527306/support.

## Transcript

[0:34] We will never have those memories. No more hugs, no more snuggles.
[0:39] They were ripped from us. Orno is a city located in Hannepin County,
[0:51] Minnesota, in the United States. It's on the north shore of Lake Minnetonka
[0:58] and is a suburban community for its scenic beauty. The city is also known
[1:03] as a commuter hub due to its close proximity to the nearby Minneapolis. Education
[1:08] holds paramount importance in Orno, with the esteemed Orno Public School District, renowned
[1:15] for its academic excellence and strong community backing. The district comprises Orno High School,
[1:22] Orno Middle School, and two elementary schools. Fostering a culture of learning
[1:26] and growth. Beyond academics, Orno offers abundant recreational opportunities, from boating and
[1:33] fishing on Lake Minnetonka to hiking and picnicking in its numerous parks and trails.
[1:38] It was a quiet morning for police officers in Orno on the twenty eighth of
[1:42] May twenty twenty two. Some rite on patrol when a nine to one one
[1:49] call came into the dispatch center at around seven a m. It was from
[1:55] a woman who reported seeing a Chevrolet Palla weaving through traffic with the sh shattered
[2:00] rear window and a flat tire. She wondered if possibly it was a drunk
[2:05] driver and feared for the safety of other drivers and people. The despatcher wasted
[2:09] no time in relating this information to the nearest patrol units. Within minutes,
[2:15] Officer Trent Wybush and his colleague took off in the direction of where the car
[2:21] was reported to be driving. It wasn't long until they spotted a Chevrolet pala
[2:27] driving along Barlet Avenue. The front tire was missing and the car was riding
[2:32] on the rim. As the rhythmic thud of metal against the pavement sounded out,
[2:39] the officers turned on their sirens and the car pulled over to the side
[2:44] of the road. As they drew closer, they could see that the back
[2:49] window of the vehicle had been smashed and a tire was missing, much like
[2:53] the caller had said. The two officers anticipated a drunken driver to emerge,
[3:00] but when a woman emerged from the driver's side and she was sober, they
[3:04] seemed perplexed. But her demeanor was quite strange to the officers. She was
[3:10] disheveled and unkempt, and appeared to be nervous and fidgety. The two officers
[3:16] took her behind the vehicle, and as one of them questioned her, the
[3:20] other glanced into the vehicle. They could see a bullet hole in the back
[3:25] seat, as well as a live shotgun shell and a spent casing. As
[3:31] they spoke with the woman, they then noticed that there was some blood on
[3:36] her hands. Eli Hart came into the world on the fifteenth of December two
[3:54] thousand and fifteen to parents Jealousythealer and Tory Heart, who were both nineteen years
[4:01] old at the time they met. Their relationship swiftly evolved, leading them to
[4:06] move in together within months, and soon they welcomed their son, Eli into
[4:12] their lives. However, Eli faced challenges from the start, being born with
[4:17] towns Brock syndrome, a rare genetic disorder causing various developmental issues. This condition
[4:25] led to kidney disease and hearing difficulties, necessitating the use of hearing aids.
[4:31] But despite these obstacles, Eli remained resilient. He even managed to enjoy typical
[4:38] childhood activities such as running and playing, despite some physical challenges like overlapping toes
[4:44] on his flat feet. Yet amidst these trials, Eli encountered another struggle in
[4:49] his life, his Motherjlyssa. She battled with long standing substance abuse problems,
[4:58] which persisted even after Eli's pa earth. Some people who knew her believed that
[5:02] she may have been using drugs during her pregnancy. Jellius's life had been marked
[5:09] by adversity long before Eli came into the world. Struggles with mental health,
[5:15] including depression, mood disorder, and borderline personality disorder, had plagued her since
[5:20] her adolescence. Her battles extended to substance abuse, leading to multiple hospitalizations in
[5:28] periods of homelessness, including a stint on the street for forty five days during
[5:32] her final year of high school. Despite years of medication, Julyssa chose to
[5:38] discontinue treatment. Before Eli was born, those who knew Julissa held out hope
[5:44] that motherhood would inspire positive change, believing Eli's presence might prompt her to confront
[5:49] her addiction and seek professional support. However, this optimism proved unfounded as Jelusa
[5:57] continued to grapple with her demons despite their responsibility of motherhood. Jealus's mental health
[6:03] struggles escalated, but instead of turning inward, they took a harmful turn towards
[6:10] Tory. She began fabricating accusations of abuse, once even involving the police by
[6:15] alleging physical harm during an argument. Jelyssa went as far as claiming that Tory
[6:21] threatened her life if she ever left him, only to retract the complaint days
[6:27] later, admitting that it was fabricated due to her untreated mental health issues.
[6:33] Despite this, Jelyssa repeated her false accusations the following year, this time alleging
[6:40] that Tory had threatened her with a shotgun. I Ever, given her history
[6:45] and the lack of evidence, police chose not to pursue charges. Fearing further
[6:50] damage, Tory decided to end their relationship and he left their shared home.
[6:58] Dorry wanted to get full custody of his son, Eli, but his efforts
[7:00] were thwarted because of the false orders of protection that have been filed by Jelussa.
[7:06] She frequently sought restraining orders against Tory, accusing him of making threats to
[7:12] physically harm her and Eli. These were always unfounded, but Julyussa had found
[7:17] a way to manipulate the system in her favor. In Minnesota, unlike some
[7:24] other states, unwed fathers have no custodial rights unless the courts award them.
[7:30] The system truly favors mothers over and over again, even when concerns are raised
[7:36] this. Jealus's own father said, I guarantee you one hundred percent that Tory
[7:42] is incapable of anything Julyusa has accused him of. He wasn't even in the
[7:46] state when some of this stuff supposedly happened. He has received showing he was
[7:51] in Wisconsin almost three hours away. But these are sades did very little to
[7:58] sway the court. Julyssa was granted full custody of Eli. After the family
[8:11] dissolved. Jelysa and Tory didn't cross paths again until two thousand nineteen, when
[8:16] she unexpectedly appeared at his sister's wedding. A few months later, Jelyssa accused
[8:22] Tory of planting a nail bomb in her car, prompting police involvement. Despite
[8:28] no evidence of such an act, a judge still ordered Tory to stay away
[8:33] from Julyusa for two years, even though he resided in Wisconsin at the time.
[8:37] Then, in October of twenty twenty, police responded to Julysa and Eli's
[8:43] residence after Eli locked his mother out. Upon entering the home, police were
[8:48] shocked by the squalid conditions. The pervasive musty odor assaulted their senses, while
[8:56] piles of rubbish and dirty dishes cluttered nearly every room. The upper floor bathroom
[9:01] was flooded, and eggs had been smashed and spread throughout the entire home.
[9:07] The officers observed troubling signs. Eli lacked clothing, born open wound on his
[9:13] elbow, and he was also found without his essential hearing aids. Child Protective
[9:20] Services intervened, temporarily removing Eli from Jealus's care and placing him into foster care.
[9:26] During her scheduled visits with Eli, social workers observed Julus's alarming behavior.
[9:33] She displayed consistent anger towards her son, often blaming him for their separation and
[9:39] the intervention of police. Julius's accusations against Eli for locking her out and spreading
[9:46] eggs in the house were particularly disturbing. She told the four year old,
[9:52] that made them come and get you, instilling guilt and fear into him.
[9:58] Eli's demeanor during these encounters was equally as disturbing. He appeared frightened of his
[10:03] mother, seeking refuge behind furniture and refusing to engage with her. After Jelyssa
[10:09] left, social workers sometimes found that Eli had wet himself, indicating distress and
[10:15] anxiety in his mother's presence. On a scale from one to ten, swallowing
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[11:48] y. Nevertheless, Julyssa eventually got custody back and Eli returned to her care,
[11:58] but another concerning reports surfaced. In January of twenty twenty one, Job
[12:05] Protective Services received a call indicating that Jalissa was experiencing psychosis and hearing voices urging
[12:11] her to harm herself. It had also been discovered that she had been showing
[12:16] Eli disturbing videos of cat feces and new women. She had been experiencing a
[12:22] level of paranoia and had set up a noise machine in her apartment because she
[12:28] feared that her neighbors were spying on her. As a result, Eli was
[12:31] once more removed from Julyus's care and placed into foster care under the guardianship of
[12:37] a woman named Nikida Kromberg. During this period, Eli had the opportunity to
[12:43] spend quality time with his father, who sees the chance to teach him valuable
[12:48] skills such as riding a bike and enjoying weekend fishing trips together. Despite the
[12:54] challenges that he faced, Eli remained a cheerful and content child with matchbox cars
[13:01] and harbored dreams of becoming a firefighter. One day, Eli eagerly embraced fishing
[13:05] with his father, displaying a natural talent for the activity from the outset.
[13:11] Despite his father's extensive experience and ownership of a bad shop, Eli I performed
[13:16] him in fishing that day and caught more fish. Tory reminisced I got him
[13:24] a small kid's poll, but he wanted to use my bigger one. He
[13:26] got a down first cast. By now, Tory had moved on with a
[13:31] woman named Josie Josephson, who embraced Eli as part of their family. Tory
[13:37] chairs the opportunity to establish stability and a genuine connection with his son, eagerly
[13:41] anticipating their time together. Under Tory's care, Eli enjoyed new freedoms, including
[13:48] sleepovers at his father's house, a privilege denied. During Julyus's custody, they
[13:54] established traditions such as Tuesday nights at Cabun's restaurant, where Eli always ordered his
[14:01] favorite dish, a massive bowl of meat balls. Josie said of Tory,
[14:07] he was missing a piece of himself when his son wasn't drowned. During the
[14:20] Costaly battle, Child Protective Services raised significant concerns about Jealus's suitability as a mother.
[14:28] These worries stemmed from her troubled mental health history and her involvement in criminal
[14:33] activities. In June of twenty twenty two, Jaliusa faced a workplace hearing due
[14:39] to allegations of stealing drugs from a health clinic. This added to a list
[14:43] of transgressions that included multiple traffic violations such as speeding, reckless driving, and
[14:50] using a cell phone while driving. Jalus's ongoing substance abuse problems further exacerbated the
[14:56] situation, and she tested positive for methadone and OxyContin. Her living situation was
[15:03] also unstable, marked by eviction from two homes due to disruptive behavior. The
[15:09] prompted police intervention twenty one times in a mere ten months. She was once
[15:15] kicked out after keeping ducks in the living room. Jelyusa attempted to address her
[15:20] addiction at a drug testing facility, but was ultimately expelled due to what staff
[15:24] described as bizarre behavior. Amidst these concerns, Child Protective Services highlighted apprehensions that
[15:33] julysses mental health struggles might impede her ability to provide proper care for Eli.
[15:39] They also feared her actions could be negatively impacting Eli's relationship with his father,
[15:45] who they described as a stabilizing influence in his life. Despite these serious concerns,
[15:50] judged him. Wermiger ruled in Julysses's favor, granting her custody of Eli
[15:54] on a trial basis in December. While Julyssa had the lacking of one social
[16:00] worker, Beth Denner, who advocated for her to receive full custody, Dinner,
[16:06] had also highlighted some concerning issues. She noted that Julysa had been absent
[16:11] from weekly therapy sessions for several months and lacked insight into her own mental health
[16:15] and behavior. Additionally, Denner pointed out instances of neglect regarding Eli's medical needs,
[16:22] particularly regarding his hearing aids. But despite these red flags, Denner said
[16:29] in her report, there's no current indication that her son is physically unsafe in
[16:33] her care. So on the tenth of May twenty twenty two, Jealusa was
[16:38] granted full custody of Eli. This decision deeply upset Tory, as he believed
[16:45] that Eli had a more stable relationship with his foster mother, which had allowed
[16:48] him to be in the picture. Determined to secure custody himself, Tory expressed
[16:55] his desire for Eli to come and live with him in Wisconsin, where he
[17:00] debate shop. Following Eli's return to living with his mother, there was a
[17:06] noticeable shift in his behavior. Previously a diligent and cheerful child at school,
[17:11] he began displaying signs of anxiety and engaging in troubling behavior. Instances such as
[17:18] pushing a child off a slide and kicking another in the throat, actions that
[17:22] were completely uncharacteristic of him, raised serious concerns for Tory about Eli's well being
[17:30] at home. Eli had often shown up to school without his hearing aids,
[17:34] and he often told teachers that he hadn't slept. The situation continued to deteriorate
[17:41] as Eli started to regress further. He developed habits such as chewing on his
[17:48] t shirt, struggled with sleep, and exhibited speech patterns akin to a baby
[17:53] accompanied by stuttering. Fearing that Eli might be subjected to abuse to he took
[18:00] action and reached out to Dakotah County social workers to express his apprehensions. Tory
[18:07] emphasized that Eli hadn't exhibited any of these issues before returning to live with his
[18:11] mother. He pointed out Julyus's troubled mental health history, noting instances of paranoia
[18:18] and auditory hallucinations. He also said, I feel so bad for Eli.
[18:26] I feel he will be injured or worse being back with his mum. Concerned
[18:30] about his son's safety and well being, Tory firmly believed that Eli would be
[18:34] better off under his care in Wisconsin. In pursuit of this belief, Tory
[18:41] initiated a separate legal case to secure custody of his son. A hearing on
[18:47] that petition was scheduled for the twenty first of June. Even Jelus's father seemed
[18:52] to support this decision. He said of Tory, he was the parent that
[18:56] Eli deserved. He's the guy you want raising your grandchildild Julyiss's grandmother, Linda,
[19:03] also agreed. She had once had a close relationship with her Granddaughterjlyssa,
[19:07] but after she filed the phony restraining orders against Tory, she cut off all
[19:11] ties with her. She recalled that man doesn't have a mean bone in his
[19:17] body. I said, you drop that restraining order now, or you can
[19:22] consider our relationship done. That was the last time I talked to her.
[19:26] According to records, Eli appeared to be much happier when he was with his
[19:30] father during their visits. One of them noted, Tory brings age appropriate toys
[19:37] and activities, and it's very engaging with Eli. During these visits, Eli
[19:41] is noticeably smiling, talkative, energetic, and he seems to enjoy them.
[19:48] It was a stark difference to the notes of when Eli was visiting with his
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[21:21] morbidology. That's neutrifail dot com promo code morbidology. Tory wasn't the only one
[21:30] to observe the distressing changes in Eli's behavior after Julysa gottfil custody. Eli's foster
[21:37] mother, Nikita, also took action by reaching out to Child Protective Services.
[21:44] She voiced her concerns about Julyusa's potential danger to Eli, even suggesting that she
[21:48] might resort to extreme measures to prevent Tory from gaining custody. She commented,
[21:56] I express those fears numerous times and it was clearly brushed aside. Just ten
[22:07] days after Julyssa regained full custody of her son, police in the city pulled
[22:11] over a young woman who was driving with her back window smashed and her tire
[22:17] missing. She explained to the officers that she was on route to meet her
[22:22] AA sponsor, a tonker Alinau Society in Mournd when she was ambushed by individuals
[22:27] emerging from nearby woods who began pelting her car with rocks. She further claimed
[22:34] that they had fired upon her vehicle with what she initially thought was a BB
[22:38] gun, but later said that it was a paintball gun. While one officer
[22:44] conversed with the woman, another officer, Officer Wybush, conducted a visual inspection
[22:48] of the vehicle's exterior. He was immediately struck by a pungent odor of decay
[22:55] emanating from the car. Upond closer examineation, he observed traces of blood in
[23:00] the back seat, on the ceiling, and along the passenger side door.
[23:06] There was also what appeared to be a bullet hole, as well as a
[23:08] live shotgun shell, and di spent casing there is no tire there, there's
[23:17] blood called over the pot. Finally, should I have a broken windshield?
[23:22] And I'm missing a tire because when the kids were shooting at my car?
[23:26] Some what it looks like blood in there. It's not blood, it's deer
[23:30] meat. I had a big bag and there's a farm around here that does
[23:33] deo meat, hamburgers, sucking shells. When questioned about the blood, the
[23:37] woman said she had recently purchased some deer meat from a farmer, but blood
[23:44] was also present on her hands, which she explained away as being from changing
[23:48] her tampon. The officer spent the next thirty minutes trying to figure out if
[23:52] the woman had been involved in an incident outside of their jurisdiction. While they
[24:00] were doing this, the woman appeared to become impatient. She complained that she
[24:04] was cold, so the officers told her she could leave while they looked into
[24:08] the matter. However, they needed to give her a lift back home because
[24:14] her vehicle wasn't roadworthy. Before they left, they asked the woman for some
[24:19] identification. She told them that her name was Jelisa Thaylor. The two officers
[24:34] accompanied Julyssa back to her apartment in Spring Park before returning to her damaged vehicle.
[24:41] They intended to have it towed for further investigation. While waiting for the
[24:45] tow truck, the officers decided to conduct a preliminary inspection. In the backseat,
[24:52] they noticed what appeared to be bloody tissue. Upon opening the trunk,
[24:56] they were confronted with a shotgun hidden behind a gray blanket. The blanket itself
[25:03] bore traces of a blood like substance, along with what appeared to be brain
[25:08] matter. Beneath the blanket lay a horrifying discovery. All right, let's discover
[25:18] it was the lifeless and disfigured body of a young boy, his features unrecognizable.
[25:26] It was six year old Eli, and he had been shot nine times
[25:30] with a shotgun, completely destroying his face and upper body. The officers wasted
[25:34] no time and swiftly returned to Julius's apartment. However, their repeated knocks on
[25:41] the door yielded no response. Without hesitation, they resorted to breaking down the
[25:47] door, revealing an early empty apartment with only the sound of a running washing
[25:52] machine echoing through the space. Upon closer inspection, they discovered that inside the
[25:59] washing machine with the very clothes Jelusa had been wearing during the traffic stop.
[26:06] Their investigation led them to Jelica just a few blocks away from her home,
[26:10] where she was arrested. As she was placed into handcuffs, the officers observed
[26:15] blood and human tissue entangled within her hair. Following Jelyus's arrest, she was
[26:26] charged with the second degree murder of Eli, prompting detectives to launch a thor
[26:30] investigation into their final movements. Utilizing the damage caused by Jelus's car, detectives
[26:37] managed to reconstruct some of her activity from that morning. Their investigation led them
[26:42] to a nearby petrol station where Jelyussa had been before her encounter with the officers.
[26:49] Searching the area, detectives made some chilling discoveries in the dumpsters. Among
[26:55] them was a backpack stained with blood and brain matter. In another dumpster,
[27:00] they found a child booster's seat ominously marked by a shotgun blast in the exact
[27:06] position where a child's head would have rested. It became apparent that Eli had
[27:11] been secured in his booster's seat when he suffered the horrific fate of being shot
[27:17] nine times. With the shotgun. Alongside the booster's seat lay Eli's blood soaked
[27:22] backpack containing his untouched homework. As detective stealth deeper into the investigation, they
[27:30] uncovered more evidence linking Julyusa to Eli's murder. Al Mavasquez, the clerk at
[27:37] the Shell gas station, provided crucial insight recounting Jalus's activities that morning. She
[27:45] said that Julusa had spent approximately an awe at the gas station, cleaning out
[27:48] her car's back seat and disposing of the items in the dumpsters. Alma also
[27:55] observed Julyussa washing her hands in a puddle, a detail that proved significant in
[28:00] the forensic analysis. Upon further examination at the gas station, forensic experts discovered
[28:07] traces of Eli's DNA in the water and dumpsters. Additionally, testimony from a
[28:12] friend shed light on Jealus's disturbing behavior leading up to Eli's death. She had
[28:18] shown a keen interest in firearms, purchasing a shotgun and ammunition with a disturbing
[28:25] request for the most destructive rounds. Julyusa had also researched morbid topics such as
[28:32] child life insurance and blood loss thresholds for a six year old. The detectives
[28:37] continued in their investigation and they obtained surveillance footage from outside Julyss's apartment the night
[28:42] before Eli was found. She could be seen loading a long object wrapped in
[28:48] a blanket into her car. It was the shotgun. As she did that,
[28:55] Eli skipped along and climbed into the back seat of the car. As
[29:06] details of Eli's upbringing were made public, questions were raised about whether or not
[29:11] he had been failed by the services set up to protect children just like him.
[29:15] His former foster mother, Nikita, blasted the child protective services and said
[29:21] that they had failed Eli big time. Tori's fiancee, Jucy, echoed the
[29:26] same sentiment, stating, no matter how many times we cried, they ignored
[29:32] us, no matter how many warning signs we gave. On the twenty second
[29:37] of May, approximately two hundred people gathered at the Wistonka Library to honor the
[29:41] memory of Eli. The library held special significance as it was a place that
[29:47] Eli had cherished, often visiting with his father to indulge in their shared love
[29:52] of reading. As a tribute to Eli's aspirations of becoming a firefighter, the
[29:57] Mound Fire Department presented a helmet in his honor, along with bestowing upon him
[30:03] the title of Honorary Member. Eli's dreams would forever remain unfulfilled as he would
[30:10] forever remain six years old. Tory, who was holding tightly to a bag
[30:15] containing his son's ashes, was present at the service, accompanied by Eli's foster
[30:21] father, Brian Nair. Brian reflected on the poignant gathering, stating, it's
[30:27] sad to see that it has to come from a little boy passing in such
[30:30] a violent death, but it's great to see the support from the community.
[30:36] It's great to see people have come out to support his family and just come
[30:40] together and remember Eli, remember the happy times. After the memorial, the
[30:45] Mound City Council voted to name a local bridge in Eli's honor. The bridge
[30:51] was across a channel from Lake Minnetonka and was currently unnamed. The petition to
[30:56] rename the bridge after Eli dream more than two thouy three hundred signatures. People
[31:03] had suggested that renaming the bridge in Eli's memory would remind people to keep pushing
[31:07] for a better system to protect children, but the community wanted to do more
[31:14] to remember Eli, and a group of people began fundraising to build a playground
[31:18] in his name. Eli had loved playgrounds, especially the monkey bars, and
[31:25] it seemed like a fitting tribute. In August of that year, Tory filed
[31:30] lawsuit against Dakota Conti and three of its employees for allegedly ignoring warning signs that
[31:36] Julyssa was mentally ill and unfit to care for Eli. He noted how two
[31:41] social workers and a court appointed to guardian had repeatedly raised concerns about Julyssa but
[31:47] still recommended she be granted full custody. His attorney, Joshua Touchscherer announced,
[31:53] had due care and reasonable decision making being employed here, Eli would not have
[31:57] been returned to his mother her and she would not have had an opportunity to
[32:01] kill him. In the lawsuit, Torri accused Julissa of failing to abide by
[32:07] the rules set down by the court and her monitors, such as failing to
[32:10] show up from mandated drug tests and engaging in inappropriate conduct with her son.
[32:16] He accused her of leaving rotting food in her apartment, testing positive for methadone
[32:22] and OxyContin, and exposing Eli to images and videos of naked women. He
[32:28] also said that Julyssa had told her therapist that she had once left Eli on
[32:32] the side of a cliff in Colorado when she fetched a drinking cup. She
[32:37] had described tying a rope onto herself and climbing down the side of the cliff
[32:42] to retrieve the drinking cup. She had left Eli unattended at the cliff side
[32:47] and couldn't say why she didn't just go out and purchase a new drinking cup
[32:52] instead of putting herself and Eli in danger. While this was going through the
[32:58] courts, Julyssa had a competency of valuation at the request of her defense attorney.
[33:02] It found that she was competent and could assist in her own defense.
[33:07] Then, in January of twenty twenty three, Julysses murder charge was upgraded to
[33:13] first degree murder. Her trial was scheduled for the following month, but before
[33:17] then, she made a request to the judge. She asked for a warning
[33:22] during the trial before graphic photographs and evidence were presented, and asked whether she
[33:27] could leave the courtroom to avoid seeing exactly what she had done to her own
[33:31] son. Prosecutor dan Ahllerd described the photographs as the worst thing he had ever
[33:37] seen in his entire life and objected to Jelica being given a warning or being
[33:42] allowed to leave the courtroom. The judge ultimately rejected her request, and by
[33:46] the third of February, a jury was seated and the trial was ready to
[33:51] begin. The courtroom filled up quickly as Julyssa sat alongside her defense in preparation
[34:00] for the opening statements. Her defense attorney, Rebecca Nuthed, asked the jury
[34:06] to come to the table with an open mind, assume nothing, and withhold
[34:10] judgment until deliberations. She stated, a beautiful six year old boy is dead.
[34:17] His grieving mother is sitting here accused of murdering her son with a shotgun.
[34:22] There's no light at the end of this trial, no way to bring
[34:25] him back. Prosecutor Breda Rap didn't offer a motivation during her opening statements,
[34:31] but said that they would show that the murder was premeditated. She revealed how
[34:37] Julyssa had taken out life insurance policies, obtained a firearm permit, purchased a
[34:42] shotgun, and even searched on the internet how much life insurance pay for a
[34:46] dead child, as well as how much blood can a six year old loose.
[34:52] The first witness to testify during the trial was Torri, who poignantly told
[34:55] the cord that there was still so much she wanted to do with his son
[35:00] before his life was brutally cut short. He was emotional as he said,
[35:06] he was everything to me. He completed my life. I just loved spending
[35:10] time with him, all the stuff I got to show him and all the
[35:14] stuff I wanted to show him. The two officers who responded to the nine
[35:19] one one call the morning Eli's body was fond testified about Julyus's demeanor. She
[35:24] refused to make eye contact and appeared to be nervous. Officer Trent Weybersh stated,
[35:30] it raised my level of alertness to be beyond a routine traffic stop,
[35:36] something more is going on than not having attire. The evidence against Jualusa was
[35:43] overwhelming. Detectives presented the surveillance footage as well as the forensic evidence founded the
[35:49] dumpster and puddle. When Julyisso was arrested, the blood and brain matter in
[35:54] her hair came back as a match to Eli's DNA. The prosecutor said that
[36:00] the night that Eli was killed had followed what seemed to be a happy day
[36:05] for him. Eli and Julyssa had gone shopping, ate pizza, and then
[36:09] watched movies. This testimony had come from Julyus's boyfriend at the time, Robert
[36:15] Piccerinian. But when it came bedtime, Eli didn't want to go to sleep.
[36:21] This caused an argument, so Julyuses shuffled him into the car. Prosecutor
[36:27] Allerd said that Eli probably thought he was going on a late night adventure with
[36:30] his mother. They drove around the western suburbs of Minneapolis until Julusa found a
[36:37] secluded foot where she shot him nine times as he sat in the back seat.
[36:44] The prosecutor noted that the final three shots were fired after Jelusa had reloaded
[36:49] the weapon. Cell Phone data from Jealuses's phone placed the murder at Lake Minnetonka
[36:57] Regional Park. Her cell phone day also put her at all of the scenes
[37:00] where evidence was found. While the prosecution wasn't required to prove a motive for
[37:06] the murder, they mentioned that Eli was the subject of a custody dispute between
[37:10] Julyusa and Tory. The defense, on the other hand, suggested that somebody
[37:16] else may have pulled the trigger. Defense attorney Brian Leary admitted that the prosecution
[37:22] had presented enough evidence to show that Julyssa was guilty of participating in murder.
[37:29] However, he said they didn't prove beyond a reasonable dout that the gun was
[37:31] in her hands. He stated, she destroyed evidence, lied to police,
[37:38] ran away, but they have improved beyond a reasonable doubt that the gun was
[37:43] in her hands when it was fired nine times into her son. The defense
[37:49] attorney declined to suggest who may have pulled the trigger, and he opted out
[37:52] of calling any witnesses. However, Jelyssa and Eli were the only two scenes
[37:58] getting into the car the night of the murder. Then Jelyssa arrived back home
[38:02] alone after the two officers escorted her there after stopping her damaged veco. The
[38:09] jury deliberated for just two hours before finding Julyusa Thailor guilty of the murder of
[38:15] Eli Hart. The judge scheduled the sentencing phase for the sixteenth of February,
[38:21] but the conviction carried an automatic life sentence. The details of Eli's murder were
[38:28] so horrific the jurors were offered free crisis counseling. On the sixteenth of February,
[38:38] Julyssa returned to court to be sentenced for Eli's murder. Victim impact statements
[38:44] were presented, and Eli's father and stepmother were the first to stand before the
[38:49] microphone. Eli was an amazing six year old boy who always woke up full
[38:53] of energy and laughter. He was kind, made friends, easily, loved
[38:58] reading books. Eli had a love for animals that was very special. Eli
[39:04] explored, played outside, fished with his dad. Ulyssa said alongside her defense
[39:09] team, wiping white tears with the tissue as Josie spoke about the bond between
[39:14] Eli and Tory. The love and connection he had with his son. The
[39:21] Tory had with his only son was something I was privileged to see. You
[39:29] could see the love and bond they shared every second they were together. They
[39:34] had this extra spark between them that everyone could see. Now we only have
[39:40] memories. I'm there not enough. Time was taken from us, A lifetime
[39:51] of memories to be made, gone the moment, the moment I treasured as
[39:58] being a parent myself. Tory will never have those experiences, a lifetime without
[40:05] Eli, robbed of us. School milestones that we will never get to see,
[40:12] like graduating kindergarten, in elementary school, although artwork he would have brought
[40:16] home and put on the fridge, Taken the first day of middle school,
[40:22] and high school, prom graduation, watch him play sports, teach him to
[40:27] drive. Stolen from us, watching Eli grow and become a young man,
[40:34] and what he could have been and done in this world. We will never
[40:38] have those memories. No more hugs, no more snuggles. They were ripped
[40:44] from us. Josie spoke on behalf of herself and Tory, but he stood
[40:49] by her side the entire Timejlyssa was then given the chance to make a statement,
[40:55] I'm in it. Fuck you all you're going. That's the layer on
[41:00] that I missed ought I you know doing on that that's appropriate here? Sorry?
[41:05] I told you? What's somebody else can what I would say? Is
[41:08] you know, the word saying that seems to happen to parents is to lose
[41:14] their child. It's worse though, when you don't lose your child to something
[41:19] like cancer or an accident. It's when someone takes that child from the world.
[41:24] What I can imagine, nobody can imagine, is when the person that
[41:29] takes a child from the world is the one that brought that child hand.
[41:32] But that is what the jury concluded you did. And I respect the jury's
[41:37] judgment, and I respect Minnesota's decision about what the appropriate consequence is. Nothing
[41:44] I do would bring justice to this situation. Nothing I do would really any
[41:50] of the pain that you caused by doing that. But what is, according
[41:53] to a lot of just and faris sentence for what you did is what mister
[41:58] Ali said, and that is life imprisoned without the possibility of craw So will
[42:06] injudged guilty at first to be murder and issue that says, I will not
[42:10] in your stomach ground line side five line is that you are being said to
[42:17] life in prison without the possibility of parasar. Julissa Thaler was then sentenced to
[42:22] life in prison in December of twenty twenty three. Mound City Council that proved
[42:31] the new playground to be dedicated in Eli's memory. Private fundraising had covered the
[42:37] cost of the playground equipment, and the council voted to spend one hundred and
[42:42] twenty thousand dollars from the city's Municipal Liquor Fund and a special Project Reserve fund
[42:47] to prepare the ground for the new playground. It was to replace the smaller
[42:52] playground in Surfside Park on the shore of Lake Minnetonka. It's scheduled to be
[42:59] built in open by the summer of twenty twenty four. The lawsuit that Torri
[43:05] filed is still pending. The tragic story of Eli Hart underscores the flaws within
[43:10] a system vulnerable to manipulation by a parent driven to win costady by any means
[43:16] necessary. It exposes the daunting challenges that fathers face in securing costady rights,
[43:23] particularly in cases where the parents were never married. Tragically, Eli paid the
[43:30] ultimate price as a result of these systemic shortcomings. While Bessie's that is it
[43:58] for this episode of Morbid A is always thank you so much for listening,
[44:01] and I'd like to say a massive thank you to my new supporters up on
[44:06] Patreon, Carrie and Lea. You can join Morbidology on Patreon for as little
[44:09] as one dollar a month and there are no obligations. You can cancel your
[44:14] subscription at any kind. Up on Patreon, I upload adfree in early release
[44:19] episodes bus episodes of Morbidology plus behind the scenes, and I also send out
[44:23] a handwritten thank you card along with some merch As mentioned, Morbidology is not
[44:30] up on YouTube. The episodes on YouTube are presented in a documentary style,
[44:35] along with photographs and videos relevant to each case, including interrogations, surveillance footage,
[44:42] interviews, and trial testimony. So if you're up on YouTube, please
[44:45] go over and search for Morbiology and hit that subscribe button. Remember to check
[44:51] us out at morbidology dot com for more information about this episode and to read
[44:54] some true crime articles. Until next time, take care of yourselves, stay
[44:59] safe, and half an amazing whek

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