Crime Junkie is examining the murder of teenager Christie Mullins who was abducted, sexually assaulted, and beaten to death by Henry Newell, Jr., in Clintonville, a suburb of Columbus, Ohio, in 1975.
On August 23, 1975, Christie was just 14 years old when she was taken from Graceland Shopping Center and murdered with a wooden board by Newell. Unfortunately, the police botched the ensuing investigation, meaning Newell got away with murder.
Newell claimed to be the one to find the body, and he told the cops he saw a man hitting the teenager with a wooden board. He gave the police a description of a man that closely resembled Jack Carmen.
Carmen was a severely mentally challenged individual who reportedly had an IQ of approximately only 50. He lived at a foster facility and needed help with day-to-day life.
The police seized on Carmen, detaining him for five hours without an attorney before he was officially arrested. Carmen confessed to killing and raping Christie. He later told reporters that he confessed because the police were so nice to him.
The prosecutors chose not to seek the death penalty, which led to Carmen receiving a sentence of life in prison.
ACLU lawyers had Jack Carmen acquitted of Christie Mullins murder
However, a short time after the conviction, lawyers from the American Civil Liberties Union pounced on the case and worked to have Carmen found innocent.
Watch the Latest on our YouTube ChannelIn 1977, Carmen was given a retrial, and his lawyers successfully had him acquitted. The Columbus police took another look at the case, but nothing came of it.
It would take 40 years before the Columbus cops admitted the case had been botched due to “shoddy” police work and that the real killer was Henry Newell. The police also apologized to Christie’s family for not arresting Newell.
Newell had been an important part of the case, yet he was ruled out as a suspect for some reason.
Henry Newell relatives said he killed Christie Mullins
The case was finally cracked because relatives and friends of Newell came forward to say he had admitted to killing Christie. Newell’s niece, Pam Brown, was instrumental in bringing the truth to light. She told the police that Newell had made sure the family stayed quiet about his murderous crimes through fear of repercussions if they spoke out.
Newell had been quite open about the crime with his relatives, admitting that he tied up and hit Christie after she spurned his sexual advances. The killer passed away from cancer in 2013.
MURDERED: Christie Mullins is available to download now on Crime Junkie.