The Wrong Mother: How Julie Rea Was Convicted of Killing Her Own Son
10 Minute Murder | Bingeable True Crime Stories
Joe
4.9 • 638 Ratings
🗓️ 5 March 2026
⏱️ 13 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In October 1997, ten-year-old Joel Kirkpatrick was stabbed to death in his bed in Lawrenceville, Illinois, in a homicide investigation that would expose the catastrophic consequences of tunnel vision policing, junk forensic science, and the weight a single courtroom assumption can carry. His mother, Julie Rea, a PhD student in educational psychology, was convicted and sentenced to 65 years in prison despite no physical evidence connecting her to her son's death.
What followed was nearly a decade of wrongful imprisonment, a true crime author who happened to catch the right television segment at the right moment, and a serial killer sitting on death row in Texas who turned out to be the only person willing to tell the truth. This case has a custody battle weaponized as motive, a nomadic predator with a body count stretching across the country, and a confession that cracked open a case the state of Illinois had tried to seal forever. Joel deserved better. So did his mom. And the way justice finally arrived for this family is one of the most remarkable stories you will ever hear.
#TrueCrime #WrongfulConviction #JulieRea #TommyLynnSells #InnocenceProject #SerialKiller #TrueCrimePodcast
🔔 Subscribe for True Crime Cases multiple times a week
Never miss a story. Subscribe to 10 Minute Murder for bite-sized true crime episodes delivered fresh every week.
Get a weekly email from me about the upcoming cases and more: 10minutemurder.com/newsletter
📱 Follow for Behind-the-Scenes Content Get exclusive case updates, research photos, and sneak peeks of upcoming episodes:
- Instagram: @10minutemurder on IG
- Facebook: 10 Minute Murder on FB
- TikTok: 10 Minute Murder on TikTok
- Rate & Review: Leave a 5-star review to help other true crime fans discover the show
- Share: Send this episode to fellow true crime enthusiasts
- Join the Discussion: Tag us in your episode reactions on social media
Check out True Crime Blueprint, also created and hosted by Joe.
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/43zuDpH01HtdIrH0ShCAid?si=86b2281063334139
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-blueprint/id1877878404
iHeartRadio: https://iheart.com/podcast/323307878
Amazon Music/Audible: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/b7d5eaae-9d27-40f9-8efb-6864c2af8055
Deezer: https://www.deezer.com/show/1002664071
Podcast Addict: https://podcastaddict.com/podcast/true-crime-blueprint/6785639
Podchaser: https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/true-crime-blueprint-6381660
Spreaker: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-blueprint--6879387
Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/1113943
Pandora: https://www.pandora.com/podcast/true-crime-blueprint/PC:1001113943
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/10-minute-murder-bingeable-true-crime-stories--4603604/support.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | A 10-year-old boy is murdered in his bed in the middle of the night. |
| 0:05.0 | His mother survives the attack and tells police exactly what happened. |
| 0:09.0 | And within days, law enforcement has already made up their minds about who did it. |
| 0:13.0 | But they didn't know. What nobody knew was the actual killer was already several states away, |
| 0:19.0 | and he was going to spend the next seven years carrying |
| 0:22.1 | this secret until a true crime author asked him exactly the right question. |
| 0:50.9 | Yeah. October 1997, Lawrenceville, Illinois, population around 10,000 people, kind of small. |
| 0:56.2 | Everyone knows everyone, which also means everyone's nose is in everyone else's business. |
| 1:01.5 | And when something terrible happens, the rumor mill is already running well before the police tape goes up. |
| 1:07.7 | Julie Ray is 35 years old at this point. |
| 1:10.7 | She's a PhD student in educational psychology |
| 1:13.6 | at Indiana University, a field literally dedicated to understanding how children's minds grow and |
| 1:20.3 | develop. She has a 10-year-old son named Joel Kirkpatrick. And by every account, from people |
| 1:26.7 | who actually knew him, Joel was one of those |
| 1:29.2 | genuinely special kids, brilliant and sweet, gifted and loving. The boy who made adults around him |
| 1:36.6 | feel like maybe the next generation was going to be okay, after all. He had that energy. Julie and her |
| 1:43.1 | ex-husband, Lynn Kirkpatrick, had been divorced since 1994 and were in the |
| 1:48.3 | middle of a real custody dispute. |
| 1:50.7 | A court had recently granted residential custody to Lynn, and Julie was actively appealing |
| 1:56.2 | that decision. |
| 1:57.5 | So Joel was at Julie's place for a visit on October 12th into the early morning hours of |
| 2:02.7 | October 13, 1997. He went to sleep in his room. His mom went to sleep in hers. At four in the |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Joe, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Joe and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.