Remember Maddie Clifton/Found under neighbor boys bed?
tiny dancer
By SHARON COHEN
AP National Writer
Posted: Today at 12:33 p.m.
Every month or so, Missy Phillips makes a four-hour drive to visit her son
in prison, refusing to accept that his fate has been sealed - and he will
die behind bars. Joshua, just 23, is serving a life-without-parole sentence
in Florida for a ghastly crime - the bludgeoning and stabbing of his
8-year-old neighbor, Maddie Clifton. He's nearing the end of what could be
the first of many decades behind bars.
But his mother doesn't see it that way.
"We talk in terms of when he gets out, not if," Phillips says. "I have to
keep some semblance of hope for both of us. I don't know how it's going to
happen. I do believe that someday he will walk out of there. I can't go the
other way."
Joshua Phillips was just 14 in November 1998 when Maddie, who lived across
the street in Jacksonville, disappeared. He joined in the massive search for
her. Police were even at his house for routine questioning. About a week
later, Missy Phillips made a horrifying discovery: She noticed a wet spot
near her son's water bed, pulled aside the frame and saw Maddie's feet.
Police said Joshua Phillips confessed, claiming he beat Maddie with a bat
and repeatedly stabbed her in a panic to stop her screams after he
accidentally hit her with a baseball. Prosecutors cast doubt on that story.
Phillips says she has repeatedly begged her son for an explanation, but has
never received one.
"I used to plead, 'Josh, I found Maddie in our home. I think I deserve to
know what happened,' " she says. "He won't discuss it with me. I had to
learn how to step back ... and say I may never know."
Phillips, now 52, had done her own soul-searching over the years.
"I think every mother who has a tragedy of this magnitude - certainly early
on, you question yourself: Did I miss something? Did I do something wrong?"
she says. "Every mother who loves her child feels a responsibility. ... He's
told me more than once, 'It's not anything you did or didn't do.' "
A year after the murder, Phillips says she approached Maddie Clifton's
mother and they have spoken several times. And when Phillips' husband,
Steve, was killed in a car accident in 2000, the girl's mother, Sheila,
visited to offer her condolences. "She's a kind person," Phillips says.
Phillips has remarried - she met her British husband after he read about her
son's case on the Internet and she has taken his name, though she prefers
not to make it public. She says she moved twice to stay anonymous as she
presses for a new trial for her son, claiming his attorney was incompetent.
She maintains her son's sentence is excessive.
"They should have some alternative way of dealing with juveniles in serious
situations so they don't get their lives thrown away," she says. "That's
what the state says - my son's life is worthless. Just throw away the key."
State Attorney Harry Shorstein, who prosecuted Joshua as an adult, says his
case - and those of other juvenile lifers - should be reviewed at some point
and the possibility of release considered if appropriate.
Phillips tries to be upbeat, but admits her resolve sometimes wavers.
"I'm human," she says. "I have my moments, my worries and my doubts."
As much as her son dominates her thoughts, she says when she sees a little
girl with her family, she is haunted by memories of Maddie Clifton.
"Of course, I'm mindful of Maddie not being here," she says. "As close as I
am to this tragedy, I can't say I know their pain anymore than they know
mine. .. I think of them a lot. I think of Maddie a lot. ... I'll carry this
with me until I die."
http://www.wral.com/news/national_world/national/story/2144643/
Ago@faraway JonesieCat
"tiny dancer" <tinyda...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:ZXJ6j.19121$_m.1...@bignews4.bellsouth.net...
As I recall, the first thing to draw her to her son's room that day was the
=odor=. Then she saw the spot and pulled apart the bed and saw the feet. She
called the police immed IIRC. I do feel for this woman. I would like to know
more about their family and their lives before Maddie's death. And didn't
the killer have sibs?
jc
tiny dancer
"JonesieCat" <Long Ago@Far Away> wrote in message
news:475b70c1$0$30016$afc3...@news.optusnet.com.au...
>
snipped> >
> > http://www.wral.com/news/national_world/national/story/2144643/
>
> As I recall, the first thing to draw her to her son's room that day was
the
> =odor=. Then she saw the spot and pulled apart the bed and saw the feet.
She
> called the police immed IIRC. I do feel for this woman. I would like to
know
> more about their family and their lives before Maddie's death. And didn't
> the killer have sibs?
>
> jc
I don't think he had any siblings, but I'm not sure. The thing I seem to
remember is the boy was very much afraid of his father. I recall
hearing/reading that his father was quite strict with him. But then, again,
IIRC, I also remember hearing/reading about the boy having viewed some sort
of online porn just before Maddie went missing. Something that disputed the
boys version of events.
It's hard for me to imagine simply getting hit in the head with a baseball
would cause an otherwise *tom-boyish* girl to freak out. And again, IIRC,
Maddie was a bit of a tom-boy.
td
>
>
ItsJustMe
pay a horrible amount of attention because I was actually looking for
something else about a Joshua in Florida. This kid really screwed up my
search,let me tell ya <bfg>
Wasn't it also around the same time that the 12 y/o kid beat his neighbor to
death doing wrestling moves?
Ago@faraway JonesieCat
I remember that too, about the father. And the sibs I'm thinking of were
=Maddie's= sibs I bet. The boy had had some sort of unrequited crush on
Maddie's older sister I think? Whatever his motive or intent, it wasn't
because of covering up an accidental hit on the head that he killed her.
Puh-leez.
jc
Marianna
> In article <ZXJ6j.19121$_m.15...@bignews4.bellsouth.net>,
> "tiny dancer" <tinydancer...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Mom Hopes Incarcerated Son Will be Freed
> > By SHARON COHEN
> > AP National Writer
>
> Juveniles shouldn't get life sentences. This is sounds like a
> juvenile case instead of an adult.
Let me give you my two cents on this: Joshua Phillips is exactly where
he should be, and he needs to stay there. His mother is delusional.
This kid PARTICIPATED in the searches for Maddie Clifton, and denied
knowing anything about her disappearance. The story 'round here (this
happened less than a mile from my house) at the time was that the mom
went in his room because of the smell, but she thought he just hadn't
kept his birdcage clean. So she went in and then found Maddie's feet
sticking out from under the bed; something like 3 days after she'd
vanished. She told cops that she hadn't been in the kid's room for
something like three days so how was she to know Maddie's body was in
there? Do you ever go that many days without going into *your* kid's
room, especially in a house of about 1500 square feet? I'm in my kids'
room every day, but that's just me, I guess.
That kid had problems beforehand and was in some alternative school at
the time of the murder. I don't know why. Maybe the records were
sealed due to his juvenile status. It's clear from the mom's comments
now that she's just as much in denial about her little angel now as
she was then. I don't give her any particular props for calling LE
when she found Maddie; she couldn't have kept that hidden any more
although I bet she would have if she could.
Marianna
jon...@evms.edu
> punished, and spend time in prison. However, Florida has appeared
> especially draconian about punishing juveniles. I don't know the
> details of this case, and I don't take the mother's version as gospel
> because of one press report, but either like Lionel Tate this could had
> been a second degree murder case, or there should be more discretion for
> the judge on sentencing guidelines given the circumstances of this case
> and the age of the defendant.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
http://castleofhopeforlostsouls.org/theinjusticesystem/joshuaphillips.html
ItsJustMe
<jon...@evms.edu> wrote in message
news:a0c45a92-b514-4680...@e23g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
>>
>> - Show quoted text -
>
> http://castleofhopeforlostsouls.org/theinjusticesystem/joshuaphillips.html
He was placed in solitary for his own protection, for 9 months, and his
father and I could hug him only a handful of times during that period, as
our weekly 2.5 hour visit was with a plexiglass partition and through phones
that sometimes did not work.
Hmm... more hugs than Maddie got.
More time to visit than Maddie got....
I'm not sure how I feel about youths in adult prisons,I'm more of a case by
case basis person... but this lady pisses me off.
Marianna
>
>
>
>
>
> Marianna <nomiddleinitia...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> Hold on. What Joshua Phillips did was unspeakable, and he should be
> punished, and spend time in prison. However, Florida has appeared
> especially draconian about punishing juveniles. I don't know the
> details of this case, and I don't take the mother's version as gospel
> because of one press report, but either like Lionel Tate this could had
> been a second degree murder case, or there should be more discretion for
> the judge on sentencing guidelines given the circumstances of this case
> and the age of the defendant.-
I'm not sure I'm understanding your point on this. Lionel Tate is a
wonderful example of someone who was dealt with far too leniently and
has gone on to be predictably worthless as an adult. Not every
juvenile should be put away forever, of course. But bludgeoning a
child to death, hiding the body, and lying about it for 3 days until
confronted with it- nawp, sorry. "Fear of punishment" isn't an
acceptable criminal defense, AFAIC.
Marianna
Ago@faraway JonesieCat
"ItsJustMe" <ells...@geemail.com> wrote in message
news:VvW6j.28664$JD.1...@newssvr21.news.prodigy.net...
Mmm. Nah, I cut her some slack. But - no way would I want "this child" as
she still calls him, living anywhere near me or mine - ever. As she says,
now that he's been in awhile he's becoming hardened and careful.
(((shudder)))
jc
tiny dancer
"Marianna" <nomiddle...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:abf020a7-45a2-415c...@w40g2000hsb.googlegroups.com...
I'm trying to remember this case as best I can. IIRC, I think there was
*doubt* about his story as soon as Maddies body was found. Her body/autopsy
didn't match up with the story given. He stabbed her a number of times,
stabbed her some more 'because she was still *making
noise/breathing/gurgling*, something along those lines. And I want to say
evidence was found of a sexual assault on Maddie at the time of autopsy. I
could be confusing that with a different case, but I don't think so. And I
also thought there was some sort of reference to the viewing of porn
connected to the sexual assault on the little girl.
td
tiny dancer
"comadrejo" <comad...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:comadrejo-t-79DB...@newsgroups.comcast.net...
> In article <c7Y6j.36073$K27....@bignews6.bellsouth.net>,
> assault, it wasn't part of the prosecution's case.
>
> http://www.cnn.com/US/9907/07/florida.child.murder.02/index.html
thanks for the article. I was searching a little bit last night to try and
find what it was I was remembering. The only thing I saw in the posted
article that 'could be' reference to it was this:
But while the bed was brought into the court, the defense is objecting to
other evidence the prosecution plans to offer, claiming it is so graphic it
would be prejudicial to Phillips' defense.
I *think* what I'm remembering was from one of those 20/20 or 48 Hours type
programs, done around the time of the trial perhaps. I don't recall if
there was any evidence of an eye injury at autopsy to support the boys story
or not. But again, IIRC, there was evidence on the bat that was in his
bedroom of Maddies blood, tissue, etc. still on the bat.
Like I said, I could be wrong, but I'd bet money, not a lot, but some
anyway, that there was more to the story than the boy simply 'being afraid'
of his dad. I know his dad did *scare* him, was very much overly strict on
the boy, etc. But I'd swear there was something else involved here and that
it had to do with some sort of *imitation* of something to do with porn. It
was all very allusive at the time, but I'd swear it came out in one of those
programs.
td
Marianna
> I *think* what I'm remembering was from one of those 20/20 or 48 Hours type
> programs, done around the time of the trial perhaps. I don't recall if
> there was any evidence of an eye injury at autopsy to support the boys story
> or not. But again, IIRC, there was evidence on the bat that was in his
> bedroom of Maddies blood, tissue, etc. still on the bat.
>
> Like I said, I could be wrong, but I'd bet money, not a lot, but some
> anyway, that there was more to the story than the boy simply 'being afraid'
> of his dad. I know his dad did *scare* him, was very much overly strict on
> the boy, etc. But I'd swear there was something else involved here and that
> it had to do with some sort of *imitation* of something to do with porn. It
> was all very allusive at the time, but I'd swear it came out in one of those
> programs.
Maddie's shorts and panties had been removed, but there was apparently
no evidence of sexual assault. That detail wasn't ever explaned AFAIK
while the case was at trial. Phillips had viewed some kind of
cheerleader torture/sex crime porn on his computer just a few hours
(2, I think) of killing Maddie, and had viewed it before on several
occasions. I don't know what the programs made of all that because I
didn't see them; all I saw was the news coverage here.
Marianna
tiny dancer
Thanks for the clarification, Marianna. I was sure I'd heard something,
somewhere, about some sort of sexual deviance involved in the crime. But
that it wasn't really *reported* in the news or at trial. I think in the
program I saw, it was more alluded to, that there was more than meets the
eye in this crime. And that it didn't match up with the boys original
story.
td
Marianna
> > > Like I said, I could be wrong, but I'd bet money, not a lot, but some anyway, that there was more to the story than the boy simply 'being afraid' of his dad. I know his dad did *scare* him, was very much overly strict on the boy, etc. But I'd swear there was something else involved here and that it had to do with some sort of *imitation* of something to do with porn. It was all very allusive at the time, but I'd swear it came out in one of those programs.
> > Maddie's shorts and panties had been removed, but there was apparently
> > no evidence of sexual assault. That detail wasn't ever explaned AFAIK
> > while the case was at trial. Phillips had viewed some kind of
> > cheerleader torture/sex crime porn on his computer just a few hours
> > (2, I think) of killing Maddie, and had viewed it before on several
> > occasions. I don't know what the programs made of all that because I
> > didn't see them; all I saw was the news coverage here.
> Thanks for the clarification, Marianna. I was sure I'd heard something,
> somewhere, about some sort of sexual deviance involved in the crime. But
> that it wasn't really *reported* in the news or at trial. I think in the
> program I saw, it was more alluded to, that there was more than meets the
> eye in this crime. And that it didn't match up with the boys original
> story.
Tiny, if you do a google search for Joshua Phillips you'll find a
number of blogs and things posted by his mother. She paints a very
self-serving picture of herself and her kid; not all that surprising,
I guess, but one of the stories *she* posted was how Joshua once stole
her ATM card to get money to buy an Xbox or some such game system.
You'd think a kid who was soooo afraid of his father wouldn't pull a
stunt like that- unless he expected his mother to cover for him. I
think there's a lot about him that never came out, most likely due to
his juvie status- after all, good kids don't just get sent to
"alternative" schools for no reason.
Marianna
tiny dancer
Thanks Marianna, I will do that. I have read and come across some of the
sites his mother was/is a part of. Although I did remember a lot of this
stuff, I had forgotten about his juvvie record and alternative school.
td
Messalina
Suddenly, the reason why kids are capable of doing such things is a
lot clearer.
Mez
moca...@gmail.com
this... is perhaps the most damning evidence there is that it wad just a paniced murder to cover up a black eye.
he stole a picture if her weeks prior.. and had it buy his bed while he slept on too of her dead body. that kid... and niw man does not need nor deserve to be out living his life with the rest of us.
all the people saying " oh i dont know much about the case,but he was kid.." can keep their opinions to them selves. he was not trying to hide her screams about a black eye. sick little fuck helped search and slept with her for 7 day after sexually assulting and murdering her. scum is scum weather they are 14 of 40.