In May 2006, 41-year-old Earon Harper was shot in her Louisville, Kentucky, home, as detailed in NBC’s “Dateline: Against All Odds.” The authorities were astonished to learn that Earon’s infant daughter had also been seriously harmed by the offenders even though she eventually passed away from her wounds. After more than a year, the case was finally solved thanks to an informant’s evidence and the police’s tenacity. We have information for you if you’re curious to learn more about the case, including the identities and whereabouts of the murderers. So let’s get started, shall we?
Who Are Kenneth Williams and James Quisenberry?
In May 2006, Earon Michelle Harper occupied a rental house on Wilson Avenue in south Louisville. On May 18, 2006, the mother of four was discovered dead in her house next to her youngest daughter, Erica Hughes, who was two at the time and lying next to her in a pool of blood. The horrifying discovery was made by Earon’s landlord on May 18 in the late afternoon. The landlord claims that when he arrived at Earon’s house, he saw the front door ajar and an open, empty pocketbook on the walk leading to her door.
When no one answered the door, he repeatedly knocked before entering. The 41-year-old tenant was discovered unconscious on the floor between the living room and a bedroom, shocking the man. To add to his horror, he noticed two-year-old Erica laying on the bed in the bedroom, suffering from severe wounds and wailing in agony. He contacted 911 out of panic, and the police arrived shortly after his plea for help. The medical examiner determined that Earon and her daughter had each sustained at least two gunshot wounds.
At midnight on May 18, the police discovered Earon had received two brief calls from a number registered to James Quisenberry Lee Jr. On June 6, James received a phone call for an interview. James acknowledged that it was his phone number and that he had known Earon for a while. He asserted that they exchanged prescription drugs as part of their connection. Yet on May 18, he turned down her invitation to spend the morning there.
The police identified James and Kenneth A. Williams as being at the pharmacy’s prescription window on May 17 based on surveillance footage from the Walgreens pharmacy where James worked and the testimony of another pharmacist. But their efforts to get prescription medication were in vain. The chemist quickly learned that his car’s owner’s handbook, registration and insurance certificate had been taken, according to court records. The police discovered the stolen goods close to Earon’s house in a catch basin after receiving a citizen’s report.
They also located empty prescription bottles with her name on them, her driver’s licence, many bank and shopping cards, and more. James and Kenneth were recognised as suspects in the murder of Earon, but the police were unable to apprehend them because of a lack of proof. Before the authorities made their breakthrough, the case remained unsolved for more than a year. In July 2007, Rashon Turner, a longtime buddy of both suspects, offered to testify against his ex-pals in exchange for a favourable plea deal.
Where Are Kenneth Williams and James Quisenberry Now?
He was charged with his own unrelated murder. Rashon testified that a few weeks after the Derby in May 2006, he was on the porch of Kenneth’s mother’s house visiting Kenneth’s sibling. Rashon claimed Kenneth had called and accused him of robbing a store. Kenneth told Rashon they had gone to a woman’s Wilson Avenue home to get some pills shortly after James left him off there.
Kenneth, according to James Quisenberry Rashon, shot the woman and another person as he snatched her pocketbook from her hands. Rashon reportedly saw some pills and a black, semi-automatic 9mm handgun from Kenneth. He claimed that when he and James were still in south Louisville, he had thrown away certain papers and other objects. Rashon also thought Kenneth sold the rifle at a later time. On August 29, 2007, the investigators questioned both suspects once more armed with the damning testimony.
Even though they initially denied being at Earon’s residence on May 18 in the morning, they soon came to believe the police had evidence of their attendance. Both of them blamed their acquaintance but denied shooting Earon or her daughter. The jury gave Kenneth the starring role, convicting him of killing Earon and of abusing and trying to kill Erica in 2009. James was also judged responsible for the child’s offences and guilty of second-degree manslaughter.
Kenneth was given a life sentence without the possibility of parole by the Jefferson Circuit Court, while James received a 45-year prison term. James, 42, is incarcerated at the Western Kentucky Correctional Facility in Lyon County, Kentucky, according to court records. According to his court records, his term concludes in 2054, and he will be eligible for parole in January 2026. In West Liberty, Kentucky, at the Eastern Kentucky Correctional Complex, Kenneth, 38, is a prisoner.