James Phillip Barnes (March 7, 1962 – August 3, 2023) was an American murderer and self-identified

serial killer A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone: * * * * * (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...

who was executed by the state of Florida for the 1988 rape and murder of Patricia Miller. After converting to Islam and saying that he wanted to clear his conscience, he confessed to the murder in 2005, while already serving a life sentence for the 1997 murder of his wife. In 2012, Barnes was featured in the first episode of

Werner Herzog Werner Herzog (; né Stipetić; born 5 September 1942) is a German filmmaker, actor, opera director, and author. Regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema, his films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with unusu ...

's television series ''

On Death Row ''On Death Row'' is a television mini-series written and directed by Werner Herzog about capital punishment in the United States. The series grew out of the same project which produced Herzog's documentary film '' Into the Abyss''. The series ...

'', in which he was interviewed by Herzog at

Florida State Prison Florida State Prison (FSP), otherwise known as Raiford Prison, is an American correctional institution located in unincorporated Bradford County, Florida, with a Raiford postal address. It was formerly known as the "Florida State Prison-East U ...

. He then sent Herzog a written confession to the unsolved murders of Chester Wetmore and Brenda Fletcher in 1986 and 1991, respectively. He was not charged in either case.

Early life

James Phillip Barnes was born on March 7, 1962. He was one of five siblings and had a twin sister, Jeannice. His younger brother Michael committed suicide. It is unknown where exactly Barnes was born, but he referred to his home as

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

Murders

On April 20, 1988, Barnes invaded the home of Patricia "Patsy" Miller, a 41-year-old nurse, in

Melbourne, Florida Melbourne ( ) is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located southeast of Orlando, Florida, Orlando along Florida's Space Coast, named because of the region's proximity to Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center. The city ...

. He entered through a bedroom window and confronted her at knifepoint before sexually assaulting her. He attacked her with a hammer and bound her with his shoelaces while she was lying face down on the bed. Barnes set fire to her bed in an attempt to conceal the crime before fleeing. A medical examiner later determined that Miller had died from blunt-force trauma to the head and had been killed before the fire was started. According to investigators, Barnes did not know Miller, and her murder went unsolved. On December 11, 1997, Barnes strangled his estranged wife, 44-year-old Linda Barnes, at her home in West Melbourne, despite a restraining order that prohibited him from approaching her. After killing his wife, Barnes stuffed her body in a closet and remained at the house. On December 12, sheriff's deputies arrested Barnes at the house and he was charged with Linda's murder.

Trial and revelation

On January 9, 1998, Barnes pleaded guilty to murdering Linda and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The death penalty was waived. In 2005, Barnes, who had converted to

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

, confessed to the unsolved murder of Patricia Miller while fasting during

Ramadan Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting (''Fasting in Islam, sawm''), communal prayer (salah), reflection, and community. It is also the month in which the Quran is believed ...

. Barnes sent a letter to the assistant state attorney confessing to the crime. In 1997,

DNA evidence Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...

was matched to Barnes, and he had been questioned in the case. At the time, he had refused to talk with

Brevard County Brevard County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Florida. It is on the Atlantic coast of eastern Central Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 606,612, making it the 10th-most populated county in Florida. The official county se ...

authorities. No charges were filed until an indictment was issued by a Brevard County grand jury. In the letter, Barnes told prosecutors that he wanted to clear his conscience. Barnes said in the letter, "I murdered her atricia Millerso

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would be no witness or complaint against me." At his trial for Miller's murder, Barnes waived his right to a jury and represented himself. In 2006, he pleaded guilty to the first-degree murder of Miller along with burglary, two counts of sexual battery with a weapon and arson. On December 13, 2007, Brevard County circuit court judge Lisa Davidson sentenced Barnes to death.

Imprisonment

In 2010, Barnes was interviewed at

by German filmmaker

as part of his television series ''

''. Six weeks later, Barnes sent a letter to Herzog confessing to the unsolved murders of Chester Wetmore and Brenda Fletcher. He said that he wished to resolve the unresolved crimes he committed before he died. Police investigated his claims, but he was not charged with either murder. Barnes claimed that he had first met Wetmore in 1988, describing him as a

runaway Runaway, Runaways or Run Away may refer to: Engineering * Runaway reaction, a chemical reaction releasing more heat than what can be removed and becoming uncontrollable * Thermal runaway, self-increase of the reaction rate of an exothermic proce ...

hooked on

crystal meth Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational or performance-enhancing drug and less commonly as a second-line treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity d ...

and

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. Wetmore had been on the streets for a long time and was making money as a prostitute. He had been listed as a missing person since May 27, 1986. Barnes claimed that in 1988 Wetmore had stolen his belongings from his car, so Barnes killed Wetmore with a shotgun. He and two accomplices then buried Wetmore's body. According to Barnes, Fletcher was a prostitute and crack cocaine addict without a family. In 1991, Barnes accused her of having stolen his wallet and demanded the return of his driver's license, but when Fletcher denied the theft, Barnes killed her. Fletcher's body was discovered on April 2, 1991, in a water-filled drainage ditch in Brevard County. Fletcher had been listed as a missing person at the time of her murder and the last time that she had contact with a family member was on October 22, 1990. The interview with Barnes aired in 2012 as part of the series premiere. It included an interview with his twin sister Jeannice Barnes, but their father declined to be filmed and asked Herzog to tell his son: "One, I love him. Two, I hate the crimes he committed."

Execution

On June 22, 2023, Florida governor

Ron DeSantis Ronald Dion DeSantis (; born September 14, 1978) is an American politician, attorney, and former United States Navy, naval officer serving as the 46th List of governors of Florida, governor of Florida since 2019. A member of the Republican Pa ...

signed Barnes's death warrant. Barnes was scheduled to be executed on August 3, 2023. His older sister Beth Catron wanted the execution to proceed and said of her brother's impending execution, "Our family is glad the nightmare will soon be over, and maybe we'll be able to sleep in peace." At a hearing on June 27, 2023, Barnes stated his acceptance of responsibility for his crimes and asked to proceed to his execution without any delay. On August 3, 2023, Barnes was executed via

lethal injection Lethal injection is the practice of injecting one or more drugs into a person (typically a barbiturate, paralytic, and potassium) for the express purpose of causing death. The main application for this procedure is capital punishment, but t ...

, at age 61. He was pronounced dead at 6:13 p.m. He declined to eat a

last meal A condemned prisoner's last meal is a customary ritual preceding execution. In many countries, the prisoner may, within reason, select what the last meal will be. Contemporary restrictions in the United States Contrary to the common belief t ...

, receive visitors, or give a final statement.

References