The Rape And Live Burial Of Jessica Lunsford
Wikimedia CommonsJohn Evander Couey (left) kidnapped nine-year-old Jessica Lunsford and buried her — alive — in his own yard.
Jessica Lunsford was nine years old when sex offender John Evander Couey kidnapped her, raped her, and buried her alive.
On the night of Feb. 23, 2005, Couey broke into Lunsford’s family’s home in Homosassa, Florida, and took her from her room to his nearby trailer. He raped her over the next three days, put her into a couple of garbage bags, and buried her in his yard. According to CNN, her hands were tied with speaker wire.
The little girl was found clutching a stuffed dolphin that her father had won for her at a state fair. Couey allowed her to bring it with her before he committed his unspeakable acts. Her blood was discovered on a mattress in Couey’s home, as were her fingerprints.
The killer was said to have told Lunsford that he would take her home, but that he didn’t want her to be seen and get in trouble. And so he convinced her to climb into a garbage bag. He then placed a second bag over her head, and shoved her in a hole in the ground — before covering her with dirt.
She poked a few fingers through one of the bags before suffocating to death.
To make this ghastly horror story all the more terrifying, prosecutors later realized that Lunsford was probably alive when police interviewed Couey in his home.
“Couey’s timeline after he kidnapped Jessica Lunsford leaves open the possibility that she was alive, and in the house, at the time of the first and possibly second interview [with Couey],” a prosecution memo said.
Jurors convicted Couey of first-degree murder, kidnapping, and other charges in March 2007.
“He caused a slow, suffering, conscious death,” said Judge Ric Howard. “Her only source of comfort during this horrific experience was her purple dolphin.”
After Couey died of natural causes in 2009, it was tough for investigators and Lunsford’s family alike to find solace.
“I know he didn’t suffer the way Jessie did when he killed her,” said chief investigator Sheriff Jeff Dawsy. “I’m sorry I won’t get to look him in the eyes as he died, but I’m relieved to know he’ll never hurt another child again.”
