January 23, 2025 • 42 mins
Weeks after she was arrested for the murder of her step-daughter, Julia Bevely realized she was expecting her fourth child. Her subsequent treatment during pregnancy, birth and postpartum as a pre-trial detainee remain, next to the murder, the most disturbing aspects of the case.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Murder on Songbird Road is a production of iHeart Podcasts.
Previously on Murder on Songbird Road. We're going to head
over to hucks now, but there are three hooks in
the general vicinity.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Which one did she go to?
Speaker 3 (00:19):
It's going to be the one on the Young Street,
all right.
Speaker 4 (00:22):
So took us nine minutes fifteen seconds to get here
catching that light, which we knew. She caught the light
as well.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
The prosecution contends it would have taken Beverly six to
seven minutes to make the drive.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
She would have known because.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
You manage a gas station, that would probably be the
worst possible place if you wanted anonymity. Samples weren't collected
from Beverly's car until the evening of the murder, after
it had been moved by someone on the scene and
not Beverly. Then they go to the dump and find
(00:56):
three unrelated items.
Speaker 4 (00:59):
When knives are in introduced of any kind an a juror's.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
Mine, the damage is done. In the victim impact statement.
Speaker 1 (01:06):
Darkness the light.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
Oh that's what I wrote down.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Yeah, fucking witch.
Speaker 4 (01:15):
It could be a motive as to why this girl
was railroaded.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
Yeah, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 5 (01:23):
I mean that kind of shit is frowned upon down here.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
I'm Lauren Bright Pacheco, and this is murder on Songbird Road.
(01:52):
Within weeks of her arrest, while being held in Williamson
County custody awaiting trial, Julia Beverly made a shocking but
not entirely unexpected discovery. Here's Renee high Tower.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
She found out she was pregnant in jail.
Speaker 6 (02:07):
I was happy for her, but I was hurting for
her because I knew the situation.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
I knew they wanted another child.
Speaker 1 (02:15):
Beverly and her now estranged former fiancee Mike Beasley had
been trying for a third child together, hoping for a son.
Speaker 6 (02:23):
Julie has issues with her cervix and she wanted a
boy with him, so they were trying one last time.
When all this happened.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
For Beverly, the pregnancy was a light in a sea
of darkness.
Speaker 3 (02:39):
She wanted to nurture this baby as best she could
in the situation she was in. But it was it
was rough.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
It was rough, the best possible blessing at the worst
possible time.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
Yes, exactly.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
Upon learning her daughter was pregnant, high Tower immediately began
to petition the courts for a home based pregnancy. While
awaiting trial.
Speaker 6 (03:04):
We went to get her a bond reduction so she
can come home with her pregnancy and be around people
that care about her, people that love her, and people she.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
Loves, and see her children because her bond was set
for two million dollars.
Speaker 6 (03:18):
Yes, yes, two million dollar bond, and we went in
for a reduction and Judge Green denied it. So her
attorney said that she was going to try again at
a later time, and his response was, I know you will.
So we tried again when she was around eight months pregnant,
(03:38):
and he denied it again. She even suggested worrying an
ankle monitor. She wasn't going to go anywhere if she did,
they would immediately know about it, and he denied it again.
He gave two different reasons for each time we went.
One was he was afraid that she was a flight risk,
(03:59):
and the second one was my mother wouldn't be able
to defend herself if anything were to happen, because my
mother was living here as well. He said, my mother
was on an oxygen machine and she was not capable
of running away.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
If Julie ever attacked her.
Speaker 6 (04:20):
That my mother wouldn't be able to defend herself if
Julie got out of control.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
Am I wrong in remembering that there was also some
issue that your house was too close to a school?
Speaker 3 (04:28):
They brought it up in courts.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
What was the implication that Julie was some kind of
a threat to children in general?
Speaker 6 (04:36):
Yes, keep her away from children and elderly. We appealed it,
and then the appellate court denied.
Speaker 3 (04:42):
It as well and upheld the judge's decision.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Keep in mind that Julia Beverly had no priors, and
this was while she was awaiting trial, when she was
supposed to have been given the presumption of innocence. Renee
high Tower had immediate concerns about how her daughter was
being treated after she was taken into custody in Williamson
County before she even knew she was pregnant.
Speaker 6 (05:07):
I was trying to get a hold of her, and
the second or third day she was in there, I
was calling and calling. When I finally did talk to her,
she said that the correction officers were almost parading her
charges to everyone in there, saying that she.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Was child killer.
Speaker 6 (05:25):
And not only that, they said that her father was
a police officer trying to rile up people in jail
to do things to her, to harm her.
Speaker 3 (05:37):
MM.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
What would you say were your major concerns after Julie
was arrested.
Speaker 6 (05:43):
She had told me after she was in there three
weeks twenty one days, she hadn't taken a shower or
got the opportunity to brush her teeth at all since
the time she stepped in there, and for twenty one
days following. I called called the sheriff, spoke to him directly,
Benny Vick, and I voiced my complaints and he said, well,
(06:08):
inmates lie all the time. And I said, well, she
has no reason to lie about taking a shower or
brushing her teeth. So I said, do you keep this
things on record? And he said yeah, and he was
going to look into it, and he never called me back.
And then once I got off the phone with him,
I called her attorney and I told her the same thing,
and she was beside herself and she said she's going
(06:31):
to take care of it.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
Well. Julie called me the next day and said.
Speaker 6 (06:34):
She finally got her shower and got a semi kind
of toothbrush to grocer.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
Teeth under what precaution or protocol. Did they justify not
allowing her to brush her teeth or shower for twenty
one days, I've.
Speaker 6 (06:49):
Never heard an answer yet, no one returned, and he
calls to me.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
No one has answered that question, not one person.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
Who do those officers report work directly to the sheriff
I believe who's now retired.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
Yes, Beni Vic.
Speaker 6 (07:10):
Your call has been forwarded to an automated voice messaging system.
Speaker 3 (07:15):
Hi.
Speaker 1 (07:16):
My name is Lauren Bright Piceco, and I am a
journalist trying to get in.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Touch with mister Vic.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
I've reached out to former Williamson County Sheriff Benniveck to
no avail since March eighteenth, twenty twenty four. I've also
attempted to contact current Williamson County Sheriff Jeff Diedrich, making
Freedom of Information Act request for documentation of orders that
dictated Beverly's treatment while pregnant and during the delivery of
her son while she was in custody of Williamson County
(07:44):
awaiting trial. At the date of this recording, I had
yet to receive a response.
Speaker 6 (07:50):
She wasn't treated like she was an innocent human being
at all. Is sickening right down to what they were
giving her to eat. It took her a while to
get the vitamins that she That was another reasoning.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
For house releas because she had issues with iron, so
in case she needed an iron infusion.
Speaker 6 (08:08):
She finally started taking the vitamins, but nutrition was not
there because a lot of the food that they were
giving her this was during COVID.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
These are the excuses COVID. So a lot of the
meals were lunch meat.
Speaker 6 (08:23):
This went on for at least three to four months.
Speaker 3 (08:27):
Lunch meat for lunch and dinner.
Speaker 1 (08:30):
That's filled with nitrates.
Speaker 6 (08:32):
Yes, eating too much of that and her being pregnant
can get lysteria. It's just like at every opportunity that
came to them to degrade her, or belittle her, or even.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
Torture her, they did it.
Speaker 6 (08:49):
It took that opportunity and did whatever they could. There
were no presumptions of innocence while they were awaiting trial.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
It was none of that.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
None of it especially would seem when it came to
Beverly's labor and delivery. We'll be right back with Murder
on Songbird Road. Now back to Murder on Songbird Road.
(09:20):
In a six page letter, Julie Beverly shared the circumstances
of her son's birth while in custody of Williamson County.
I've asked her cousin Niki to read excerpts of that letter.
Speaker 7 (09:32):
July twenty eighth, twenty twenty one was one of the
best days of my life, and it turned into the
hardest days. I gave birth to my fourth child, Thomas.
It was hard birth because a few hours earlier I
was told for the first time.
Speaker 5 (09:45):
That he would be taken.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
Beverly goes on to explain that she was awoken in
her cell at ten pm by Williamson County jail nurse
Marilyn Reynolds, who was accompanied by a corrections officer and
a police lieutenant. Beverly was in four She was being
taken to the hospital to be induced.
Speaker 7 (10:03):
When we arrived at the hospital, Marilyn and the corrections
officer Stocker, stayed in the room with me. Nurses started
my intake, and at that time they asked if I
had planned to bottle or breastfeed. I said I wanted
to breastfeed. While I stayed in the hospital room. Then
Marilyn Reynolds tells me that the judge ordered Thomas would
be taken as soon as the umbilical cord was cut.
(10:26):
I wanted to scream at that moment, I said, no
one told me this. Her reply was, well, your attorney
and the judge signed off on it.
Speaker 1 (10:34):
Not only was Beverly not informed as to the plan
to immediately seize her son, she was denied access to
contacting her lawyers or family. Reynolds apparently ordered the phone
removed from Beverly's hospital room.
Speaker 5 (10:49):
All I could think is I didn't want to be here.
Speaker 7 (10:52):
I wanted to keep him inside until he was ready
to come out, and I'm ready for him. I didn't
want to hand him to anyone, and I wanted him
to stay until the case was resolved so that I
could take him home. I was not prepared, would never
be prepared to give Thomas to anyone.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
Beverly was forced to give birth with two Williamson County
Jail employees in her room.
Speaker 7 (11:15):
My only support system was Marilyn and the corrections officer
stuck her two people I did not want with me.
Speaker 1 (11:22):
There was a person who showed Beverly kindness and compassion
immediately after Thomas was born, her OBGYN, doctor Andrea Humphrey
By refusing to immediately cut the umbilical cord.
Speaker 7 (11:35):
Hearing that first cry is always the most amazing feeling.
He only cried for a few seconds. Once he was
placed on my chest, he was calm. Then Doctor Humphrey
did for me the most heartfelt, amazing thing. I will
never be able to express how appreciative I am for her.
She gave me the golden hour. It's an hour where
the umbilical cord stays attached and the mother and child
(11:57):
are able to bond. She gave me an hour when
the courts and the corrections officers wanted to give me seconds.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
Doctor Humphrey also made sure that photos of that hour
were taken before Beverly's son was taken from her.
Speaker 5 (12:13):
That hour was the best thing ever.
Speaker 7 (12:16):
I got to hold him and kiss him, breastfed him,
and most important, tell him that I loved him and
I will forever love him.
Speaker 1 (12:24):
The pictures are heartbreaking. In them, Beverly's face clearly shows
the strain of having just given birth and the emotional
weight of balancing her love for her newborn son with
their inevitable separation.
Speaker 5 (12:38):
Then the dreaded moment came.
Speaker 7 (12:40):
Doctor Humphrey said, it's time it was like Thomas knew
because he started crying, and of course I immediately started crying,
and I'm crying now just reliving the moment.
Speaker 5 (12:53):
It broke my heart. I didn't want him to leave.
Speaker 1 (12:57):
When a hospital staff member came in to discuss the
birth certificate, Julia Beverly endured additional heartbreak, and it involved
the man she had lived with for nearly eight years
and already had two other children with, Mike Beasley.
Speaker 7 (13:11):
She said he didn't want to sign the birth certificate
without a DNA test. It felt like a slap in
the face. So he basically said he believed that I
had cheated on him. I had never given him reason
to believe that he was the love of my life
and the only person I was with, So my name
(13:32):
was the only one on the birth certificate.
Speaker 1 (13:34):
Less than twenty four hours after giving birth and still
bleeding heavily, Beverly was shackled and returned to the Williamson
County Prison, her breasts painfully swollen with milk, meant for
the son she has not seen or held since. And
then came another blow to Beverly.
Speaker 7 (13:51):
I found out later that day that Mike took Thomas
home before the DNA results came back. I don't know
why he was able to take him when he wouldn't
sign the birth certificate.
Speaker 1 (14:02):
As we'll further discuss, the circumstances surrounding Beverly's birth and
the custody of her son are even more controversial than
they are cruel. But alone in her cell, Beverly, stripped
of her newborn, felt powerless and despondent.
Speaker 7 (14:17):
I fell into a deep depression again. It was a
rough couple of weeks after that.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
Julia Beverly ended her letter with this.
Speaker 5 (14:26):
It's heart going back to these moments.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Even before reading the letter, the way in which Beverly
was forced to give birth and the way in which
her son was taken was hard for her cousin Nikki
to process.
Speaker 7 (14:39):
It's horrific, it's inhuman. I can't even imagine.
Speaker 3 (14:45):
I was.
Speaker 7 (14:47):
So worried for her leading up to the birth, just
because I know, having had three kids, everything that takes
out of you and everything that you go through, it's
all worth it in the end, because they.
Speaker 5 (15:03):
Are you and they're a part of you. And for
her to have to do that with.
Speaker 7 (15:11):
Nobody that cared for her, really, to be alone and
have to do that and then have to leave without him.
Speaker 5 (15:22):
I just can't. It's still it's extremely upsetting.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
Especially if, as Nikki vehemently believes, Julia Beverly was wrongfully
accused and convicted. Back to Beverly's mother, Renee high Tower,
how did you find out that your grandson was born?
Speaker 6 (15:41):
My friend? Actually she used to work at the hospital,
so she called saying that she needed to check on
Julia Beverly. She got through to the nurses station up
there and they told her what time she came in,
and she asked how she was doing, and then she
called me and told me that she was there. So
that's how I found out because I wasn't getting calls
(16:01):
from Julie at all, and I was worried about her.
And then when I called immediately after, they told me
she wasn't there.
Speaker 3 (16:07):
And this was within ten fifteen minutes.
Speaker 1 (16:09):
So she's put back in solitary confinement basically when she
gets back to the jail.
Speaker 3 (16:17):
Pretty much.
Speaker 1 (16:17):
Yeah, and she's not reaching out to you, no, and
you're probably concerned again, very.
Speaker 6 (16:24):
Yeah, because I knew this is going to be heart
wrenching for her not being able to be with her
baby and the whole situation in its entirety, and she
didn't call me. I sent a text and I didn't
get a response from that. So I called the jail
and I talked to an officer who was a woman,
(16:44):
and I said, I know she had the baby. I'm
just checking to see if she's all right. She's not
calling me, And they said, I guess she's okay. She's
not in a smock and what does that mean? Meaning
she's not in a suicidal outfit, So I guess she's
all right.
Speaker 1 (17:01):
It is of interest to add that I've been given
portions of Beverly's DCFS case file by an anonymous source.
For some reason, Beverly, who is half white, is listed
as black on the reports, yet all four of her children,
whose fathers are white, are listed as white. Again, Mary
and Illinois is eighty six percent white. Here's Rene high
(17:23):
Tower's reaction.
Speaker 2 (17:25):
I have the page.
Speaker 1 (17:25):
It's on page two of fifteen. Julia Beverly adult female,
black African American, Jade Beasley child female white. I'm not
going to use the kids' names, but Mike and Julia's
one year old child is listed as female and white,
and Jaden is listed as white. Wow, as is the
(17:50):
eldest daughter that Julia and Mike share white, All the
kids are white, and just Julie is black.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
How does that happen?
Speaker 3 (18:01):
Get me?
Speaker 1 (18:02):
That view of Beverly as other seems to have also
impacted the way her entire family was treated even before
the trial, particularly when Hitower was petitioning to have Beverly
stay with her during the pregnancy.
Speaker 6 (18:16):
The sad part about one of these things is when
she was up for that hearing to the appellate court
for her to be on the house arrest just for
the birth of her baby, and we were waiting on
the results for that, and when those results came back,
they were not given to thene They were not given
to me, they were not given to Julie. Yet Mike's
family made a huge post on their Facebook denied in
(18:41):
all capital.
Speaker 3 (18:41):
Os with explanation points, and that's how we learned. That's
how we learned.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
There seems to be huge lack of communication, but it
seems to just be in one direction.
Speaker 8 (18:53):
YEP.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
A quick aside. When this interview was taped in March
of twenty twenty four, Thomas was nearly three years and
so when did you first get the chance to meet Thomas.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
I have yet to meet Thomas. I have not met
him yet.
Speaker 6 (19:09):
I've seen the pictures that Julie got from the hospital,
and that's all I have.
Speaker 1 (19:15):
Renee High Tower had been denied access to Beverly's three
youngest children her grandchildren since the arrest.
Speaker 6 (19:22):
Mike is keeping three of Julie's children from me on
what grounds. He states that he's doing it for the
protection of his children, and I'm not sure what that means.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
That's one half of their family.
Speaker 6 (19:42):
Yeah, yeah, And this is not something that was done
later in this case. This was done immediately immediately upon
Julie's arrest. As soon as she was arrested. It was
completely cut off. Even when Thomas was born. I reached out,
you need to help with the baby, let me know.
(20:02):
I'll help any way I can. Everything goes unanswered.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
That's got to be so painful.
Speaker 3 (20:08):
It is.
Speaker 6 (20:09):
It is very And then I have Jayden here, who
is missing out on three of his siblings, and he
comes to see me every other weekend, yet he can't
see his own siblings. And Mike has a direct line
to Jaden where he doesn't have to go through me
or anyone else.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
And he still doesn't maintain contact.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
With him, and Jaden sends text messages all the time
want to talk to the girls, and those go unanswered.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
High Tower has had no choice but resort to petitioning
the courts for access to her grandchildren.
Speaker 3 (20:41):
There was always an excuse, like clockwork.
Speaker 6 (20:43):
Every two weeks, I would request to see them, and
my request would either go unanswered or it would be
it's not a good time, or I'll let you know.
And this went on for a year and a half
and I finally looked into getting a jorney.
Speaker 3 (21:00):
I ended up filing for grandparent visitation.
Speaker 6 (21:04):
Never did I think it would take years.
Speaker 8 (21:09):
You have reached the non emergency line for Williamson County
Sheriff's Department.
Speaker 3 (21:12):
Get this an emergency.
Speaker 5 (21:13):
Please hang up in down nine to one one.
Speaker 3 (21:15):
Please listen carefully.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
By the fall of twenty twenty four, it's important to
stress just how unresponsive Williamson County had been to my
outreach for information pertinent to the case against Julie Beverly.
This occurred on multiple levels, across multiple branches.
Speaker 8 (21:32):
For Williamson County Jail, Please press one WAYNAMS in King Jail, Hi.
Speaker 1 (21:38):
I please speak with Marilyn Reynolds.
Speaker 5 (21:41):
Just a minute.
Speaker 8 (21:45):
Record your message.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
Hi.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
Ms Reynolds. My name is Lauren Bright pitch Ecko, and
I am a journalist who is looking into the Julia
Beverly case. I'm calling because I believe that you were
the attending on duty when she gave birth to her
son Thomas on seven twenty eight, twenty one, when she
was in custody of Williamson County awaiting trial. I'm just
(22:12):
calling because I'm trying to find out where the order
to remove the infant immediately upon birth came from. Mss
Beverly contends that you gave the direction, but I cannot
find any official order, so I'm hoping you can clear
that up for me, and also who gave the order
(22:35):
for members of the Department of Correction to be in
the room while she was giving birth. Again, my name
is Lauren Bright PACHECKA. After many failed attempts, I finally
did manage to get Williamson County Jail nurse Marilyn Reynolds
on the phone. She refused to answer any of my
questions as to whose order she was working under and
directed me back to the Williamson County Sheriff's office for information.
(22:59):
Sheriff ignored more than a dozen of my requests via
phone and email for information and records pertaining to Julia
Beverly's case. If you could give me a holler back,
I am an thank you so much. Out of frustration,
I contacted the Williamson County State's Attorney, Ted Hampson, who
replaced the former Williamson County State's Attorney Brandon Zenati, Zanati
(23:22):
having resigned under somewhat dubious circumstances.
Speaker 9 (23:26):
A former Southern Illinois state's attorney has pleaded guilty to
a federal fraud charge. Former Williamson County State's Attorney Brendan
Zanati pled guilty to a charge of false entry inv
bank records and involves Southern Trust Bank branches in Marion, Vienna,
and Goreville. That charge carries with it the possibility of
(23:46):
jail time and a fine.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
In March of twenty twenty four, I started reaching out
to Justin Mays, the Williamson County Circuit Clerk. After several
unresponsive weeks, he linked me with an assistant state's attorney,
Jerry Adams. On thirtieth she forwarded as a quote courtesy
an amended temporary custody order signed by a judge, claiming
it provided the information I was seeking, even though there
(24:10):
was no mention of birthing protocol or the immediate removal
of Beverly's infant. When pressed as to who initiated those
specific orders, she responded that Sheriff Binnyvick had retired before
wishing me quote good luck. Months later, the Williamson County
circuit clerk who'd linked us justin Mays resigned after being
(24:30):
caught up in the same real estate and banking scandal
as former Williamson County State's Attorney Brandon Soanati. Here's Renee
high Tower's take.
Speaker 6 (24:39):
For a long time, I've heard people complain about Williamson County,
and I just chalked it up as, oh, my god, Well,
if you do the right thing, you won't have nothing
to complain about. I've thought a lot about that, and
then when my ex husband became a police officer, I
learned the other side of the law from a police
(25:00):
officer's perspective, and I never thought about any of the
corruption or the poor judgment and the poor behavior of
some of these officers until this happened. To Julie, I
never seen this side until I was in it. I
(25:24):
have not ever seen this level of corruption anywhere in
my life anywhere, from the lying and the cover ups,
and it's just drip, drip, drip in the bucket. We've
got full bucket and it's still going. It's unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (25:46):
Because of the ongoing lack of response to my Freedom
of Information Act requests, I eventually contacted the Attorney General's
Office of Illinois. But federal investigations, scandals, and retirements aside,
Why would Williamson County be so reluctant to provide transparency
regarding Beverly's pregnancy, delivery and the immediate removal of her
(26:09):
son while in their Custoday, my name is.
Speaker 8 (26:12):
Emily Worth, and I am a senior staff attorney at
the ACLU of Illinois.
Speaker 1 (26:19):
According to the American Civil Liberties Union, Illinois state law
is quite clear as to the reproductive rights of incarcerated individuals.
Speaker 8 (26:27):
Reproductive rights in the context of incarceration should mean the
same things as reproductive rights in any context, which is
the right to make your own autonomous decisions about reproductive healthcare,
whether that's contraception, abortion, prenatal care care during labor and delivery.
(26:48):
It's really about having bodily autonomy when it comes to
making those decisions.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
Can you give me just a general overview of reproductive
rights while incarcerated in Illinois.
Speaker 8 (27:00):
Within Illinois, we have a state law called the Reproductive
Health Act that sets standards for everyone in the state
to have basic reproductive rights. And the Reproductive Health Act
does apply to anyone who's in the custody of a
county jail. So within the state of Illinois, the reproductive
(27:20):
rights that you have do not vary from county county.
Everyone in Illinois is guaranteed the same reproductive rights by
the Reproductive Health Act. We also have a number of
additional specific laws here in Illinois that deal with particular
issues related to pregnancy care while someone is incarcerated in
prison or jail, relating to things like the use of
(27:41):
solitary confinements, the use of restraints during pregnancy and postpartum,
and other issues unique to someone who is experiencing pregnancy
or has recently given birth.
Speaker 1 (27:53):
What are those rights specifically in terms of prenatal care, So.
Speaker 8 (27:57):
Someone who is pregnant while incarcerated in Illinois has a
right to receive adequate prenatal care that ensures that they
have healthy pregnancy. They have the right to make their
own decisions about whether to continue that pregnancy or to
obtain an abortion. If they do continue the pregnancy. They
(28:18):
have their right to make decisions about how they give birth,
for example, whether or not to have an epidural, whether
or not to have a c section, whether or not
to be induced. They have those rights to make those decisions.
Speaker 1 (28:30):
In terms of the specific amount of time that an
incarcerated person is allowed to stay with their newborn in Illinois,
are their laws around that time frame or window.
Speaker 8 (28:43):
The current law is that someone who's incarcerated has a
right to have their baby stay with them for seventy
two hours after giving birth, unless the doctor says that
that isn't safe. That became the law on July first
of twenty twenty one.
Speaker 1 (29:01):
Got it, and so it's the doctor's call, basically, not
a judge or a correctional facility nurse.
Speaker 8 (29:12):
That's correct. The law says that the determination is to
be made by a medical professional. The law became effective
July first, twenty twenty one.
Speaker 1 (29:22):
A point of note, Julia Beverly's son Thomas was born
July twenty eighth, twenty twenty one, nearly a full month
after that law went into effect. We did talk about
the seventy two hour window that the incarcerated individual is
entitled to spend with their newborn, but we didn't talk
(29:43):
about the rights specifically during delivery and birth.
Speaker 8 (29:49):
So during labor and delivery there should be no shackles
whatsoever used on an incarcerated person, and any correct staffs
that are at the hospital should be posted outside the
delivery room.
Speaker 1 (30:07):
Now, was that a change that was made at the
same time that the seventy two hours was.
Speaker 5 (30:14):
I believe that.
Speaker 8 (30:15):
Change was made earlier. That was the law even prior
to twenty twenty one.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
What recourse does an individual in Illinois specifically have if
they believe their reproductive rights were violated while they were incarcerated?
Speaker 8 (30:30):
This Reproductive Health Act includes a right of action, include
the right to sue the government if you believe that
your reproductive rights have been violated.
Speaker 1 (30:44):
Murder on Songbird Road will continue after this. Here again
is Murder on Songbird Road. In April of twenty twenty four,
I visited Beverly in the Illinois facility she was transferred
to after her sentencing. I flew into Chicago and drove
(31:06):
a rental car two and a half hours south to Lincoln, Illinois. Afterwards,
I connected with Bob Mada. It was really interesting the
difference between the women's facility and the men's facilities that
I've been in. Yeah, I mean right away, it's sprawled
out so Originally it was built as a home for
(31:31):
women who didn't want to keep their children, and I
guess they'd give birth and then give the children.
Speaker 2 (31:37):
Up for adoption.
Speaker 1 (31:38):
But there's nothing but just cornfields, basically just farmland, and
then this brick structure that's all sprawled out in little houses.
You almost get the feeling that it's a religious retreat
or some kind of school.
Speaker 4 (31:57):
Even if that's the vibe, we know that what it is,
that's for sure.
Speaker 1 (32:01):
I was the only visitor who signed up for the
four thirty to eight thirty time slot.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
Really, so once I went.
Speaker 1 (32:12):
Through, and of course they pat you down and you
had to declare every piece of metal on your body,
and then they led me through to another building where
Julie was just sitting by herself. The first thing that
(32:33):
I was taken aback by was her size.
Speaker 3 (32:37):
She is so.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Tiny, she's tiny, tiny.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
And also she was so pale, and I mentioned that
because she doesn't look like her mugshot. That's the thing
that she hears most often people don't recognize her from
her mugshot because the mugshot really almost looks like it's
in black and white. It is a darker version of Julie,
(33:09):
which I find interesting because of the layers that race plays.
In this case particularly, it's almost as if they wanted
to magnify the half black side of her. So I
don't know if there was some tampering at work in
terms of that photo. But then I think about that
(33:31):
press conference that Zenati, the then state's attorney, when he
held up the photo of Julie, because he announced the
murder and her arrest during the same press conference, and
then he held up this picture of Jade that is
dated at this point, but very very vibrant, and you
(33:52):
see the blonde hair, and you see pink as her
favorite color everywhere in that photo, and the juxtaposition with
a dark, grainy grayness of the black and white feel
Julie's mugshot is just jarring.
Speaker 4 (34:07):
Yeah, well, I mean in terms of the picture of Jade,
it's completely a misrepresentation of what she looked like at
the time that the crime occurred.
Speaker 5 (34:19):
I mean, she was a big kid.
Speaker 4 (34:23):
When I first laid eyes on a photograph of Jade,
I never in a million years would have thought that
she was eleven years old.
Speaker 3 (34:30):
No way.
Speaker 1 (34:32):
Yeah, she looked older in her physicality. Also the size difference.
I am closer to Jade's size almost exactly, and I
towered over Julie, towered over her. And if she and
I were to get into a physical interaction, my size
(34:56):
would be such an advantage.
Speaker 2 (34:58):
I doubt Julie could pay me. I seriously doubt it.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
And there was something else we'll return to later in
greater detail, that knife wielding masked man Beverly claims to
have encountered. She placed his height at only five six
or so. If he was an imaginary boogeyman Beverly had
concocted to feign innocence, why wouldn't she have claimed he
(35:22):
was more physically imposing. Why make up a man who's
several inches shorter than the average American male. But back
to issues with Beverly's birth, which I discussed with Bob
and his wife, Alison, who is also a criminal defense attorney.
So Beverly was at the hospital when the jail nurse
(35:44):
informed her that she would not be able to keep
the baby at all. Right before that, give up her
parental rights. I mean no, no, no, there's a temporary order.
I have a copy of that. It was temporary for Mike.
But never did she waive her her parental rights or custody.
Speaker 5 (36:05):
She's not getting visitation.
Speaker 1 (36:06):
No, she's not seen any of her children since her arrest.
Speaker 5 (36:11):
She didn't seen any of her kids since the arrest.
Speaker 1 (36:16):
Mike's not bringing them Beverly's family, so her mother and
siblings have had no access.
Speaker 4 (36:23):
Julie's mom, the grandmother, is not even seeing the kids
at all.
Speaker 6 (36:27):
Now she can pick the kids up and bring onto
the mom.
Speaker 5 (36:30):
But I guess dad's letting her.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
Right, No, no, no, not letting her. They have no access.
She's never met Thomas. Julia had lost all access to
the children she shares with Mike Beasley as well, even
as Mike's new girlfriend, a stranger to Beverly and her family,
was on social media posting about them as if they
were her own.
Speaker 2 (36:50):
Even though I'm.
Speaker 1 (36:50):
Waiting on more Freedom of Information Act requests, I don't
think that anyone involved had proper authority to remove Beverly's
infant or hand him off to someone who had refused
to sign the birth certificate. And I don't think that
Beverly's treatment in Williamson County is exactly an anomaly. A
(37:13):
simple Google search would reveal multiple suits brought by former
detainees naming Williamson County jail nurse Marilyn Reynolds as a defendant.
Whose authority was she acting upon when she removed that
baby immediately after birth? It would have had to have
been with the oversight of the then sheriff vic who
(37:34):
was also named in tons of these other lawsuits in
addition to the nurse.
Speaker 5 (37:40):
Yeah, that makes sense.
Speaker 1 (37:42):
There are also multiple suits naming former Sheriff Benny Vick
as a defendant, many of which include Williamson County Jail
nurse Marilyn Reynolds. And then you've got the tons of
people who've retired or resigned since Beverly's arrest, the former sheriff,
the former lead investor stigator, the former state's attorney, And
(38:03):
it's kind of as if accountability left with them.
Speaker 3 (38:06):
Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 1 (38:07):
It was just another in the many troubling patterns that
our investigations seemed to be unearthing. It is this vilification
not only of Julie, but her entire family, because Julie's
entire family has been kept from the children, not just Julie,
which is crazy.
Speaker 4 (38:25):
Yeah, it played itself out in the way that the
trial was conducted. It played itself out in the way
that the investigation, or lack thereof, was conducted. I mean,
this was a classic case of tunnel vision.
Speaker 1 (38:37):
And I mean Beverly and her supporters do claim that
only evidence that could incriminate her was presented or tested,
from DNA to things like cell phones and electronics found
at the crime scene.
Speaker 3 (38:51):
There's no doubt about it.
Speaker 4 (38:52):
I mean, as soon as we can get an appellet
lawyer that's going to dig into the investigation that didn't
take place with the things that they didn't do that
are inexplicable in terms of devices that weren't looked at DNA,
that wasn't tested. I still, as a figure today, cannot
believe that all of Jade's devices were not forensically examined.
(39:16):
If I cannot believe that that's true at.
Speaker 1 (39:19):
This point, it was our understanding that while the phone
belonging to Julia Beverly was searched and tracked to build
a timeline of her movements. None of Jade's electronics, not
her cell phone, chromebook, laptop, or gaming device were subjected
to a forensic search.
Speaker 5 (39:37):
Why is this.
Speaker 1 (39:37):
Important because if there was any activity on any of
them after the forty five minute window during which the
prosecution contends Beverly brutally murdered Jade Beasley, Beverly's innocence would
be more than arguable. That could have been potentially exculpatory
evidence because if it showed that Julie was at the
(40:00):
station at the exact time Jade was texting. Agreed, but
we needed access to the investigation reports and the trial
transcripts to prove it.
Speaker 5 (40:11):
I want to get the transcripts.
Speaker 4 (40:13):
It's very frustrating not being able to get our.
Speaker 5 (40:15):
Hands on things.
Speaker 1 (40:17):
We can get the trial transcripts from Julie. I couldn't
because I wasn't there on a legal visit, but you could.
On the next Murder on Songbird Road, Mike Beasley's family
shares their take on Julia Beverly.
Speaker 7 (40:32):
That is where we believe the jealousy came in and
where we believe she saved.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
Allegations of witchcraft are made.
Speaker 7 (40:39):
Going online and making us a faceless cope because of
the way that she was markeered in trying to make
that insinuation just to hear.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
The plot, and I had to Salem, Massachusetts to confront
the root of the accusations. So people down there associate
witchcraft with something evil, so they're trying to associate evil
with Julie Murder on Songbird Road is a production of
iHeart Podcasts. Our executive producers are Taylor Chackoine and Lauren
Bright Pacheco. Research writing and hosting by Lauren Bright Pacheco.
(41:12):
Investigative reporting by Bob Matta and Lauren Bright Pacheco. Editing,
sound design and original music by Evan Tyre and Taylor Chaqoine.
Additional music by Asher Kurtz. Archival elements courtesy of wsil
News three. Please like, subscribe, and leave us a review.
Wherever you're listening, You can follow me on all platforms
(41:33):
at Lauren Bright Pacheco and email the show with thought,
suggestions or tips at Investigating Murder at iHeartMedia dot com.
(41:57):
For more iHeart podcasts, visit the Heart Radio app Apple
Podcasts or wherever you get your favorite shows. Thanks for listening.
Murder on Songbird Road is a production of iHeart Podcasts.
Previously on Murder on Songbird Road. We're going to head
over to hucks now, but there are three hooks in
the general vicinity.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Which one did she go to?
Speaker 3 (00:19):
It's going to be the one on the Young Street,
all right.
Speaker 4 (00:22):
So took us nine minutes fifteen seconds to get here
catching that light, which we knew. She caught the light
as well.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
The prosecution contends it would have taken Beverly six to
seven minutes to make the drive.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
She would have known because.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
You manage a gas station, that would probably be the
worst possible place if you wanted anonymity. Samples weren't collected
from Beverly's car until the evening of the murder, after
it had been moved by someone on the scene and
not Beverly. Then they go to the dump and find
(00:56):
three unrelated items.
Speaker 4 (00:59):
When knives are in introduced of any kind an a juror's.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
Mine, the damage is done. In the victim impact statement.
Speaker 1 (01:06):
Darkness the light.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
Oh that's what I wrote down.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Yeah, fucking witch.
Speaker 4 (01:15):
It could be a motive as to why this girl
was railroaded.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
Yeah, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 5 (01:23):
I mean that kind of shit is frowned upon down here.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
I'm Lauren Bright Pacheco, and this is murder on Songbird Road.
(01:52):
Within weeks of her arrest, while being held in Williamson
County custody awaiting trial, Julia Beverly made a shocking but
not entirely unexpected discovery. Here's Renee high Tower.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
She found out she was pregnant in jail.
Speaker 6 (02:07):
I was happy for her, but I was hurting for
her because I knew the situation.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
I knew they wanted another child.
Speaker 1 (02:15):
Beverly and her now estranged former fiancee Mike Beasley had
been trying for a third child together, hoping for a son.
Speaker 6 (02:23):
Julie has issues with her cervix and she wanted a
boy with him, so they were trying one last time.
When all this happened.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
For Beverly, the pregnancy was a light in a sea
of darkness.
Speaker 3 (02:39):
She wanted to nurture this baby as best she could
in the situation she was in. But it was it
was rough.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
It was rough, the best possible blessing at the worst
possible time.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
Yes, exactly.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
Upon learning her daughter was pregnant, high Tower immediately began
to petition the courts for a home based pregnancy. While
awaiting trial.
Speaker 6 (03:04):
We went to get her a bond reduction so she
can come home with her pregnancy and be around people
that care about her, people that love her, and people she.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
Loves, and see her children because her bond was set
for two million dollars.
Speaker 6 (03:18):
Yes, yes, two million dollar bond, and we went in
for a reduction and Judge Green denied it. So her
attorney said that she was going to try again at
a later time, and his response was, I know you will.
So we tried again when she was around eight months pregnant,
(03:38):
and he denied it again. She even suggested worrying an
ankle monitor. She wasn't going to go anywhere if she did,
they would immediately know about it, and he denied it again.
He gave two different reasons for each time we went.
One was he was afraid that she was a flight risk,
(03:59):
and the second one was my mother wouldn't be able
to defend herself if anything were to happen, because my
mother was living here as well. He said, my mother
was on an oxygen machine and she was not capable
of running away.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
If Julie ever attacked her.
Speaker 6 (04:20):
That my mother wouldn't be able to defend herself if
Julie got out of control.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
Am I wrong in remembering that there was also some
issue that your house was too close to a school?
Speaker 3 (04:28):
They brought it up in courts.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
What was the implication that Julie was some kind of
a threat to children in general?
Speaker 6 (04:36):
Yes, keep her away from children and elderly. We appealed it,
and then the appellate court denied.
Speaker 3 (04:42):
It as well and upheld the judge's decision.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Keep in mind that Julia Beverly had no priors, and
this was while she was awaiting trial, when she was
supposed to have been given the presumption of innocence. Renee
high Tower had immediate concerns about how her daughter was
being treated after she was taken into custody in Williamson
County before she even knew she was pregnant.
Speaker 6 (05:07):
I was trying to get a hold of her, and
the second or third day she was in there, I
was calling and calling. When I finally did talk to her,
she said that the correction officers were almost parading her
charges to everyone in there, saying that she.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Was child killer.
Speaker 6 (05:25):
And not only that, they said that her father was
a police officer trying to rile up people in jail
to do things to her, to harm her.
Speaker 3 (05:37):
MM.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
What would you say were your major concerns after Julie
was arrested.
Speaker 6 (05:43):
She had told me after she was in there three
weeks twenty one days, she hadn't taken a shower or
got the opportunity to brush her teeth at all since
the time she stepped in there, and for twenty one
days following. I called called the sheriff, spoke to him directly,
Benny Vick, and I voiced my complaints and he said, well,
(06:08):
inmates lie all the time. And I said, well, she
has no reason to lie about taking a shower or
brushing her teeth. So I said, do you keep this
things on record? And he said yeah, and he was
going to look into it, and he never called me back.
And then once I got off the phone with him,
I called her attorney and I told her the same thing,
and she was beside herself and she said she's going
(06:31):
to take care of it.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
Well. Julie called me the next day and said.
Speaker 6 (06:34):
She finally got her shower and got a semi kind
of toothbrush to grocer.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
Teeth under what precaution or protocol. Did they justify not
allowing her to brush her teeth or shower for twenty
one days, I've.
Speaker 6 (06:49):
Never heard an answer yet, no one returned, and he
calls to me.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
No one has answered that question, not one person.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
Who do those officers report work directly to the sheriff
I believe who's now retired.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
Yes, Beni Vic.
Speaker 6 (07:10):
Your call has been forwarded to an automated voice messaging system.
Speaker 3 (07:15):
Hi.
Speaker 1 (07:16):
My name is Lauren Bright Piceco, and I am a
journalist trying to get in.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Touch with mister Vic.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
I've reached out to former Williamson County Sheriff Benniveck to
no avail since March eighteenth, twenty twenty four. I've also
attempted to contact current Williamson County Sheriff Jeff Diedrich, making
Freedom of Information Act request for documentation of orders that
dictated Beverly's treatment while pregnant and during the delivery of
her son while she was in custody of Williamson County
(07:44):
awaiting trial. At the date of this recording, I had
yet to receive a response.
Speaker 6 (07:50):
She wasn't treated like she was an innocent human being
at all. Is sickening right down to what they were
giving her to eat. It took her a while to
get the vitamins that she That was another reasoning.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
For house releas because she had issues with iron, so
in case she needed an iron infusion.
Speaker 6 (08:08):
She finally started taking the vitamins, but nutrition was not
there because a lot of the food that they were
giving her this was during COVID.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
These are the excuses COVID. So a lot of the
meals were lunch meat.
Speaker 6 (08:23):
This went on for at least three to four months.
Speaker 3 (08:27):
Lunch meat for lunch and dinner.
Speaker 1 (08:30):
That's filled with nitrates.
Speaker 6 (08:32):
Yes, eating too much of that and her being pregnant
can get lysteria. It's just like at every opportunity that
came to them to degrade her, or belittle her, or even.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
Torture her, they did it.
Speaker 6 (08:49):
It took that opportunity and did whatever they could. There
were no presumptions of innocence while they were awaiting trial.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
It was none of that.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
None of it especially would seem when it came to
Beverly's labor and delivery. We'll be right back with Murder
on Songbird Road. Now back to Murder on Songbird Road.
(09:20):
In a six page letter, Julie Beverly shared the circumstances
of her son's birth while in custody of Williamson County.
I've asked her cousin Niki to read excerpts of that letter.
Speaker 7 (09:32):
July twenty eighth, twenty twenty one was one of the
best days of my life, and it turned into the
hardest days. I gave birth to my fourth child, Thomas.
It was hard birth because a few hours earlier I
was told for the first time.
Speaker 5 (09:45):
That he would be taken.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
Beverly goes on to explain that she was awoken in
her cell at ten pm by Williamson County jail nurse
Marilyn Reynolds, who was accompanied by a corrections officer and
a police lieutenant. Beverly was in four She was being
taken to the hospital to be induced.
Speaker 7 (10:03):
When we arrived at the hospital, Marilyn and the corrections
officer Stocker, stayed in the room with me. Nurses started
my intake, and at that time they asked if I
had planned to bottle or breastfeed. I said I wanted
to breastfeed. While I stayed in the hospital room. Then
Marilyn Reynolds tells me that the judge ordered Thomas would
be taken as soon as the umbilical cord was cut.
(10:26):
I wanted to scream at that moment, I said, no
one told me this. Her reply was, well, your attorney
and the judge signed off on it.
Speaker 1 (10:34):
Not only was Beverly not informed as to the plan
to immediately seize her son, she was denied access to
contacting her lawyers or family. Reynolds apparently ordered the phone
removed from Beverly's hospital room.
Speaker 5 (10:49):
All I could think is I didn't want to be here.
Speaker 7 (10:52):
I wanted to keep him inside until he was ready
to come out, and I'm ready for him. I didn't
want to hand him to anyone, and I wanted him
to stay until the case was resolved so that I
could take him home. I was not prepared, would never
be prepared to give Thomas to anyone.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
Beverly was forced to give birth with two Williamson County
Jail employees in her room.
Speaker 7 (11:15):
My only support system was Marilyn and the corrections officer
stuck her two people I did not want with me.
Speaker 1 (11:22):
There was a person who showed Beverly kindness and compassion
immediately after Thomas was born, her OBGYN, doctor Andrea Humphrey
By refusing to immediately cut the umbilical cord.
Speaker 7 (11:35):
Hearing that first cry is always the most amazing feeling.
He only cried for a few seconds. Once he was
placed on my chest, he was calm. Then Doctor Humphrey
did for me the most heartfelt, amazing thing. I will
never be able to express how appreciative I am for her.
She gave me the golden hour. It's an hour where
the umbilical cord stays attached and the mother and child
(11:57):
are able to bond. She gave me an hour when
the courts and the corrections officers wanted to give me seconds.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
Doctor Humphrey also made sure that photos of that hour
were taken before Beverly's son was taken from her.
Speaker 5 (12:13):
That hour was the best thing ever.
Speaker 7 (12:16):
I got to hold him and kiss him, breastfed him,
and most important, tell him that I loved him and
I will forever love him.
Speaker 1 (12:24):
The pictures are heartbreaking. In them, Beverly's face clearly shows
the strain of having just given birth and the emotional
weight of balancing her love for her newborn son with
their inevitable separation.
Speaker 5 (12:38):
Then the dreaded moment came.
Speaker 7 (12:40):
Doctor Humphrey said, it's time it was like Thomas knew
because he started crying, and of course I immediately started crying,
and I'm crying now just reliving the moment.
Speaker 5 (12:53):
It broke my heart. I didn't want him to leave.
Speaker 1 (12:57):
When a hospital staff member came in to discuss the
birth certificate, Julia Beverly endured additional heartbreak, and it involved
the man she had lived with for nearly eight years
and already had two other children with, Mike Beasley.
Speaker 7 (13:11):
She said he didn't want to sign the birth certificate
without a DNA test. It felt like a slap in
the face. So he basically said he believed that I
had cheated on him. I had never given him reason
to believe that he was the love of my life
and the only person I was with, So my name
(13:32):
was the only one on the birth certificate.
Speaker 1 (13:34):
Less than twenty four hours after giving birth and still
bleeding heavily, Beverly was shackled and returned to the Williamson
County Prison, her breasts painfully swollen with milk, meant for
the son she has not seen or held since. And
then came another blow to Beverly.
Speaker 7 (13:51):
I found out later that day that Mike took Thomas
home before the DNA results came back. I don't know
why he was able to take him when he wouldn't
sign the birth certificate.
Speaker 1 (14:02):
As we'll further discuss, the circumstances surrounding Beverly's birth and
the custody of her son are even more controversial than
they are cruel. But alone in her cell, Beverly, stripped
of her newborn, felt powerless and despondent.
Speaker 7 (14:17):
I fell into a deep depression again. It was a
rough couple of weeks after that.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
Julia Beverly ended her letter with this.
Speaker 5 (14:26):
It's heart going back to these moments.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Even before reading the letter, the way in which Beverly
was forced to give birth and the way in which
her son was taken was hard for her cousin Nikki
to process.
Speaker 7 (14:39):
It's horrific, it's inhuman. I can't even imagine.
Speaker 3 (14:45):
I was.
Speaker 7 (14:47):
So worried for her leading up to the birth, just
because I know, having had three kids, everything that takes
out of you and everything that you go through, it's
all worth it in the end, because they.
Speaker 5 (15:03):
Are you and they're a part of you. And for
her to have to do that with.
Speaker 7 (15:11):
Nobody that cared for her, really, to be alone and
have to do that and then have to leave without him.
Speaker 5 (15:22):
I just can't. It's still it's extremely upsetting.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
Especially if, as Nikki vehemently believes, Julia Beverly was wrongfully
accused and convicted. Back to Beverly's mother, Renee high Tower,
how did you find out that your grandson was born?
Speaker 6 (15:41):
My friend? Actually she used to work at the hospital,
so she called saying that she needed to check on
Julia Beverly. She got through to the nurses station up
there and they told her what time she came in,
and she asked how she was doing, and then she
called me and told me that she was there. So
that's how I found out because I wasn't getting calls
(16:01):
from Julie at all, and I was worried about her.
And then when I called immediately after, they told me
she wasn't there.
Speaker 3 (16:07):
And this was within ten fifteen minutes.
Speaker 1 (16:09):
So she's put back in solitary confinement basically when she
gets back to the jail.
Speaker 3 (16:17):
Pretty much.
Speaker 1 (16:17):
Yeah, and she's not reaching out to you, no, and
you're probably concerned again, very.
Speaker 6 (16:24):
Yeah, because I knew this is going to be heart
wrenching for her not being able to be with her
baby and the whole situation in its entirety, and she
didn't call me. I sent a text and I didn't
get a response from that. So I called the jail
and I talked to an officer who was a woman,
(16:44):
and I said, I know she had the baby. I'm
just checking to see if she's all right. She's not
calling me, And they said, I guess she's okay. She's
not in a smock and what does that mean? Meaning
she's not in a suicidal outfit, So I guess she's
all right.
Speaker 1 (17:01):
It is of interest to add that I've been given
portions of Beverly's DCFS case file by an anonymous source.
For some reason, Beverly, who is half white, is listed
as black on the reports, yet all four of her children,
whose fathers are white, are listed as white. Again, Mary
and Illinois is eighty six percent white. Here's Rene high
(17:23):
Tower's reaction.
Speaker 2 (17:25):
I have the page.
Speaker 1 (17:25):
It's on page two of fifteen. Julia Beverly adult female,
black African American, Jade Beasley child female white. I'm not
going to use the kids' names, but Mike and Julia's
one year old child is listed as female and white,
and Jaden is listed as white. Wow, as is the
(17:50):
eldest daughter that Julia and Mike share white, All the
kids are white, and just Julie is black.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
How does that happen?
Speaker 3 (18:01):
Get me?
Speaker 1 (18:02):
That view of Beverly as other seems to have also
impacted the way her entire family was treated even before
the trial, particularly when Hitower was petitioning to have Beverly
stay with her during the pregnancy.
Speaker 6 (18:16):
The sad part about one of these things is when
she was up for that hearing to the appellate court
for her to be on the house arrest just for
the birth of her baby, and we were waiting on
the results for that, and when those results came back,
they were not given to thene They were not given
to me, they were not given to Julie. Yet Mike's
family made a huge post on their Facebook denied in
(18:41):
all capital.
Speaker 3 (18:41):
Os with explanation points, and that's how we learned. That's
how we learned.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
There seems to be huge lack of communication, but it
seems to just be in one direction.
Speaker 8 (18:53):
YEP.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
A quick aside. When this interview was taped in March
of twenty twenty four, Thomas was nearly three years and
so when did you first get the chance to meet Thomas.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
I have yet to meet Thomas. I have not met
him yet.
Speaker 6 (19:09):
I've seen the pictures that Julie got from the hospital,
and that's all I have.
Speaker 1 (19:15):
Renee High Tower had been denied access to Beverly's three
youngest children her grandchildren since the arrest.
Speaker 6 (19:22):
Mike is keeping three of Julie's children from me on
what grounds. He states that he's doing it for the
protection of his children, and I'm not sure what that means.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
That's one half of their family.
Speaker 6 (19:42):
Yeah, yeah, And this is not something that was done
later in this case. This was done immediately immediately upon
Julie's arrest. As soon as she was arrested. It was
completely cut off. Even when Thomas was born. I reached out,
you need to help with the baby, let me know.
(20:02):
I'll help any way I can. Everything goes unanswered.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
That's got to be so painful.
Speaker 3 (20:08):
It is.
Speaker 6 (20:09):
It is very And then I have Jayden here, who
is missing out on three of his siblings, and he
comes to see me every other weekend, yet he can't
see his own siblings. And Mike has a direct line
to Jaden where he doesn't have to go through me
or anyone else.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
And he still doesn't maintain contact.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
With him, and Jaden sends text messages all the time
want to talk to the girls, and those go unanswered.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
High Tower has had no choice but resort to petitioning
the courts for access to her grandchildren.
Speaker 3 (20:41):
There was always an excuse, like clockwork.
Speaker 6 (20:43):
Every two weeks, I would request to see them, and
my request would either go unanswered or it would be
it's not a good time, or I'll let you know.
And this went on for a year and a half
and I finally looked into getting a jorney.
Speaker 3 (21:00):
I ended up filing for grandparent visitation.
Speaker 6 (21:04):
Never did I think it would take years.
Speaker 8 (21:09):
You have reached the non emergency line for Williamson County
Sheriff's Department.
Speaker 3 (21:12):
Get this an emergency.
Speaker 5 (21:13):
Please hang up in down nine to one one.
Speaker 3 (21:15):
Please listen carefully.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
By the fall of twenty twenty four, it's important to
stress just how unresponsive Williamson County had been to my
outreach for information pertinent to the case against Julie Beverly.
This occurred on multiple levels, across multiple branches.
Speaker 8 (21:32):
For Williamson County Jail, Please press one WAYNAMS in King Jail, Hi.
Speaker 1 (21:38):
I please speak with Marilyn Reynolds.
Speaker 5 (21:41):
Just a minute.
Speaker 8 (21:45):
Record your message.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
Hi.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
Ms Reynolds. My name is Lauren Bright pitch Ecko, and
I am a journalist who is looking into the Julia
Beverly case. I'm calling because I believe that you were
the attending on duty when she gave birth to her
son Thomas on seven twenty eight, twenty one, when she
was in custody of Williamson County awaiting trial. I'm just
(22:12):
calling because I'm trying to find out where the order
to remove the infant immediately upon birth came from. Mss
Beverly contends that you gave the direction, but I cannot
find any official order, so I'm hoping you can clear
that up for me, and also who gave the order
(22:35):
for members of the Department of Correction to be in
the room while she was giving birth. Again, my name
is Lauren Bright PACHECKA. After many failed attempts, I finally
did manage to get Williamson County Jail nurse Marilyn Reynolds
on the phone. She refused to answer any of my
questions as to whose order she was working under and
directed me back to the Williamson County Sheriff's office for information.
(22:59):
Sheriff ignored more than a dozen of my requests via
phone and email for information and records pertaining to Julia
Beverly's case. If you could give me a holler back,
I am an thank you so much. Out of frustration,
I contacted the Williamson County State's Attorney, Ted Hampson, who
replaced the former Williamson County State's Attorney Brandon Zenati, Zanati
(23:22):
having resigned under somewhat dubious circumstances.
Speaker 9 (23:26):
A former Southern Illinois state's attorney has pleaded guilty to
a federal fraud charge. Former Williamson County State's Attorney Brendan
Zanati pled guilty to a charge of false entry inv
bank records and involves Southern Trust Bank branches in Marion, Vienna,
and Goreville. That charge carries with it the possibility of
(23:46):
jail time and a fine.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
In March of twenty twenty four, I started reaching out
to Justin Mays, the Williamson County Circuit Clerk. After several
unresponsive weeks, he linked me with an assistant state's attorney,
Jerry Adams. On thirtieth she forwarded as a quote courtesy
an amended temporary custody order signed by a judge, claiming
it provided the information I was seeking, even though there
(24:10):
was no mention of birthing protocol or the immediate removal
of Beverly's infant. When pressed as to who initiated those
specific orders, she responded that Sheriff Binnyvick had retired before
wishing me quote good luck. Months later, the Williamson County
circuit clerk who'd linked us justin Mays resigned after being
(24:30):
caught up in the same real estate and banking scandal
as former Williamson County State's Attorney Brandon Soanati. Here's Renee
high Tower's take.
Speaker 6 (24:39):
For a long time, I've heard people complain about Williamson County,
and I just chalked it up as, oh, my god, Well,
if you do the right thing, you won't have nothing
to complain about. I've thought a lot about that, and
then when my ex husband became a police officer, I
learned the other side of the law from a police
(25:00):
officer's perspective, and I never thought about any of the
corruption or the poor judgment and the poor behavior of
some of these officers until this happened. To Julie, I
never seen this side until I was in it. I
(25:24):
have not ever seen this level of corruption anywhere in
my life anywhere, from the lying and the cover ups,
and it's just drip, drip, drip in the bucket. We've
got full bucket and it's still going. It's unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (25:46):
Because of the ongoing lack of response to my Freedom
of Information Act requests, I eventually contacted the Attorney General's
Office of Illinois. But federal investigations, scandals, and retirements aside,
Why would Williamson County be so reluctant to provide transparency
regarding Beverly's pregnancy, delivery and the immediate removal of her
(26:09):
son while in their Custoday, my name is.
Speaker 8 (26:12):
Emily Worth, and I am a senior staff attorney at
the ACLU of Illinois.
Speaker 1 (26:19):
According to the American Civil Liberties Union, Illinois state law
is quite clear as to the reproductive rights of incarcerated individuals.
Speaker 8 (26:27):
Reproductive rights in the context of incarceration should mean the
same things as reproductive rights in any context, which is
the right to make your own autonomous decisions about reproductive healthcare,
whether that's contraception, abortion, prenatal care care during labor and delivery.
(26:48):
It's really about having bodily autonomy when it comes to
making those decisions.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
Can you give me just a general overview of reproductive
rights while incarcerated in Illinois.
Speaker 8 (27:00):
Within Illinois, we have a state law called the Reproductive
Health Act that sets standards for everyone in the state
to have basic reproductive rights. And the Reproductive Health Act
does apply to anyone who's in the custody of a
county jail. So within the state of Illinois, the reproductive
(27:20):
rights that you have do not vary from county county.
Everyone in Illinois is guaranteed the same reproductive rights by
the Reproductive Health Act. We also have a number of
additional specific laws here in Illinois that deal with particular
issues related to pregnancy care while someone is incarcerated in
prison or jail, relating to things like the use of
(27:41):
solitary confinements, the use of restraints during pregnancy and postpartum,
and other issues unique to someone who is experiencing pregnancy
or has recently given birth.
Speaker 1 (27:53):
What are those rights specifically in terms of prenatal care, So.
Speaker 8 (27:57):
Someone who is pregnant while incarcerated in Illinois has a
right to receive adequate prenatal care that ensures that they
have healthy pregnancy. They have the right to make their
own decisions about whether to continue that pregnancy or to
obtain an abortion. If they do continue the pregnancy. They
(28:18):
have their right to make decisions about how they give birth,
for example, whether or not to have an epidural, whether
or not to have a c section, whether or not
to be induced. They have those rights to make those decisions.
Speaker 1 (28:30):
In terms of the specific amount of time that an
incarcerated person is allowed to stay with their newborn in Illinois,
are their laws around that time frame or window.
Speaker 8 (28:43):
The current law is that someone who's incarcerated has a
right to have their baby stay with them for seventy
two hours after giving birth, unless the doctor says that
that isn't safe. That became the law on July first
of twenty twenty one.
Speaker 1 (29:01):
Got it, and so it's the doctor's call, basically, not
a judge or a correctional facility nurse.
Speaker 8 (29:12):
That's correct. The law says that the determination is to
be made by a medical professional. The law became effective
July first, twenty twenty one.
Speaker 1 (29:22):
A point of note, Julia Beverly's son Thomas was born
July twenty eighth, twenty twenty one, nearly a full month
after that law went into effect. We did talk about
the seventy two hour window that the incarcerated individual is
entitled to spend with their newborn, but we didn't talk
(29:43):
about the rights specifically during delivery and birth.
Speaker 8 (29:49):
So during labor and delivery there should be no shackles
whatsoever used on an incarcerated person, and any correct staffs
that are at the hospital should be posted outside the
delivery room.
Speaker 1 (30:07):
Now, was that a change that was made at the
same time that the seventy two hours was.
Speaker 5 (30:14):
I believe that.
Speaker 8 (30:15):
Change was made earlier. That was the law even prior
to twenty twenty one.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
What recourse does an individual in Illinois specifically have if
they believe their reproductive rights were violated while they were incarcerated?
Speaker 8 (30:30):
This Reproductive Health Act includes a right of action, include
the right to sue the government if you believe that
your reproductive rights have been violated.
Speaker 1 (30:44):
Murder on Songbird Road will continue after this. Here again
is Murder on Songbird Road. In April of twenty twenty four,
I visited Beverly in the Illinois facility she was transferred
to after her sentencing. I flew into Chicago and drove
(31:06):
a rental car two and a half hours south to Lincoln, Illinois. Afterwards,
I connected with Bob Mada. It was really interesting the
difference between the women's facility and the men's facilities that
I've been in. Yeah, I mean right away, it's sprawled
out so Originally it was built as a home for
(31:31):
women who didn't want to keep their children, and I
guess they'd give birth and then give the children.
Speaker 2 (31:37):
Up for adoption.
Speaker 1 (31:38):
But there's nothing but just cornfields, basically just farmland, and
then this brick structure that's all sprawled out in little houses.
You almost get the feeling that it's a religious retreat
or some kind of school.
Speaker 4 (31:57):
Even if that's the vibe, we know that what it is,
that's for sure.
Speaker 1 (32:01):
I was the only visitor who signed up for the
four thirty to eight thirty time slot.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
Really, so once I went.
Speaker 1 (32:12):
Through, and of course they pat you down and you
had to declare every piece of metal on your body,
and then they led me through to another building where
Julie was just sitting by herself. The first thing that
(32:33):
I was taken aback by was her size.
Speaker 3 (32:37):
She is so.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Tiny, she's tiny, tiny.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
And also she was so pale, and I mentioned that
because she doesn't look like her mugshot. That's the thing
that she hears most often people don't recognize her from
her mugshot because the mugshot really almost looks like it's
in black and white. It is a darker version of Julie,
(33:09):
which I find interesting because of the layers that race plays.
In this case particularly, it's almost as if they wanted
to magnify the half black side of her. So I
don't know if there was some tampering at work in
terms of that photo. But then I think about that
(33:31):
press conference that Zenati, the then state's attorney, when he
held up the photo of Julie, because he announced the
murder and her arrest during the same press conference, and
then he held up this picture of Jade that is
dated at this point, but very very vibrant, and you
(33:52):
see the blonde hair, and you see pink as her
favorite color everywhere in that photo, and the juxtaposition with
a dark, grainy grayness of the black and white feel
Julie's mugshot is just jarring.
Speaker 4 (34:07):
Yeah, well, I mean in terms of the picture of Jade,
it's completely a misrepresentation of what she looked like at
the time that the crime occurred.
Speaker 5 (34:19):
I mean, she was a big kid.
Speaker 4 (34:23):
When I first laid eyes on a photograph of Jade,
I never in a million years would have thought that
she was eleven years old.
Speaker 3 (34:30):
No way.
Speaker 1 (34:32):
Yeah, she looked older in her physicality. Also the size difference.
I am closer to Jade's size almost exactly, and I
towered over Julie, towered over her. And if she and
I were to get into a physical interaction, my size
(34:56):
would be such an advantage.
Speaker 2 (34:58):
I doubt Julie could pay me. I seriously doubt it.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
And there was something else we'll return to later in
greater detail, that knife wielding masked man Beverly claims to
have encountered. She placed his height at only five six
or so. If he was an imaginary boogeyman Beverly had
concocted to feign innocence, why wouldn't she have claimed he
(35:22):
was more physically imposing. Why make up a man who's
several inches shorter than the average American male. But back
to issues with Beverly's birth, which I discussed with Bob
and his wife, Alison, who is also a criminal defense attorney.
So Beverly was at the hospital when the jail nurse
(35:44):
informed her that she would not be able to keep
the baby at all. Right before that, give up her
parental rights. I mean no, no, no, there's a temporary order.
I have a copy of that. It was temporary for Mike.
But never did she waive her her parental rights or custody.
Speaker 5 (36:05):
She's not getting visitation.
Speaker 1 (36:06):
No, she's not seen any of her children since her arrest.
Speaker 5 (36:11):
She didn't seen any of her kids since the arrest.
Speaker 1 (36:16):
Mike's not bringing them Beverly's family, so her mother and
siblings have had no access.
Speaker 4 (36:23):
Julie's mom, the grandmother, is not even seeing the kids
at all.
Speaker 6 (36:27):
Now she can pick the kids up and bring onto
the mom.
Speaker 5 (36:30):
But I guess dad's letting her.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
Right, No, no, no, not letting her. They have no access.
She's never met Thomas. Julia had lost all access to
the children she shares with Mike Beasley as well, even
as Mike's new girlfriend, a stranger to Beverly and her family,
was on social media posting about them as if they
were her own.
Speaker 2 (36:50):
Even though I'm.
Speaker 1 (36:50):
Waiting on more Freedom of Information Act requests, I don't
think that anyone involved had proper authority to remove Beverly's
infant or hand him off to someone who had refused
to sign the birth certificate. And I don't think that
Beverly's treatment in Williamson County is exactly an anomaly. A
(37:13):
simple Google search would reveal multiple suits brought by former
detainees naming Williamson County jail nurse Marilyn Reynolds as a defendant.
Whose authority was she acting upon when she removed that
baby immediately after birth? It would have had to have
been with the oversight of the then sheriff vic who
(37:34):
was also named in tons of these other lawsuits in
addition to the nurse.
Speaker 5 (37:40):
Yeah, that makes sense.
Speaker 1 (37:42):
There are also multiple suits naming former Sheriff Benny Vick
as a defendant, many of which include Williamson County Jail
nurse Marilyn Reynolds. And then you've got the tons of
people who've retired or resigned since Beverly's arrest, the former sheriff,
the former lead investor stigator, the former state's attorney, And
(38:03):
it's kind of as if accountability left with them.
Speaker 3 (38:06):
Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 1 (38:07):
It was just another in the many troubling patterns that
our investigations seemed to be unearthing. It is this vilification
not only of Julie, but her entire family, because Julie's
entire family has been kept from the children, not just Julie,
which is crazy.
Speaker 4 (38:25):
Yeah, it played itself out in the way that the
trial was conducted. It played itself out in the way
that the investigation, or lack thereof, was conducted. I mean,
this was a classic case of tunnel vision.
Speaker 1 (38:37):
And I mean Beverly and her supporters do claim that
only evidence that could incriminate her was presented or tested,
from DNA to things like cell phones and electronics found
at the crime scene.
Speaker 3 (38:51):
There's no doubt about it.
Speaker 4 (38:52):
I mean, as soon as we can get an appellet
lawyer that's going to dig into the investigation that didn't
take place with the things that they didn't do that
are inexplicable in terms of devices that weren't looked at DNA,
that wasn't tested. I still, as a figure today, cannot
believe that all of Jade's devices were not forensically examined.
(39:16):
If I cannot believe that that's true at.
Speaker 1 (39:19):
This point, it was our understanding that while the phone
belonging to Julia Beverly was searched and tracked to build
a timeline of her movements. None of Jade's electronics, not
her cell phone, chromebook, laptop, or gaming device were subjected
to a forensic search.
Speaker 5 (39:37):
Why is this.
Speaker 1 (39:37):
Important because if there was any activity on any of
them after the forty five minute window during which the
prosecution contends Beverly brutally murdered Jade Beasley, Beverly's innocence would
be more than arguable. That could have been potentially exculpatory
evidence because if it showed that Julie was at the
(40:00):
station at the exact time Jade was texting. Agreed, but
we needed access to the investigation reports and the trial
transcripts to prove it.
Speaker 5 (40:11):
I want to get the transcripts.
Speaker 4 (40:13):
It's very frustrating not being able to get our.
Speaker 5 (40:15):
Hands on things.
Speaker 1 (40:17):
We can get the trial transcripts from Julie. I couldn't
because I wasn't there on a legal visit, but you could.
On the next Murder on Songbird Road, Mike Beasley's family
shares their take on Julia Beverly.
Speaker 7 (40:32):
That is where we believe the jealousy came in and
where we believe she saved.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
Allegations of witchcraft are made.
Speaker 7 (40:39):
Going online and making us a faceless cope because of
the way that she was markeered in trying to make
that insinuation just to hear.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
The plot, and I had to Salem, Massachusetts to confront
the root of the accusations. So people down there associate
witchcraft with something evil, so they're trying to associate evil
with Julie Murder on Songbird Road is a production of
iHeart Podcasts. Our executive producers are Taylor Chackoine and Lauren
Bright Pacheco. Research writing and hosting by Lauren Bright Pacheco.
(41:12):
Investigative reporting by Bob Matta and Lauren Bright Pacheco. Editing,
sound design and original music by Evan Tyre and Taylor Chaqoine.
Additional music by Asher Kurtz. Archival elements courtesy of wsil
News three. Please like, subscribe, and leave us a review.
Wherever you're listening, You can follow me on all platforms
(41:33):
at Lauren Bright Pacheco and email the show with thought,
suggestions or tips at Investigating Murder at iHeartMedia dot com.
(41:57):
For more iHeart podcasts, visit the Heart Radio app Apple
Podcasts or wherever you get your favorite shows. Thanks for listening.
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