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Candlelight Vigil for 7-Year-Old Somer Thompson
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Feb 3,2012 at 11:54 PM EST

ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine," family and friends of 7-year-old Somer Thompson sang at a candlelight vigil near her home in Orange Park Friday night.  It was one of Somer's favorite songs.

Justice, after years of torment.  It's a way to remember young...more Somer "and for keeping her memory alive," her mother Diena Thompson said.

It's a day no one wants to remember, but no one can forget. 

"Somer Thompson, my wife and I were here the day the Amber Alert went out," former neighbor Glen Conley said

A missing young girl hit very close to home for Chastity Letson. 

"My daughter was in her class, in her reading class, and I've just been out searching from the day she went missing to the day she was found," she said.

Neighbors shared their positive memories about Somer.  "Watch her stand on the corner and them playing in the yard in the daytime, and we would wave and they would wave," Anthony Johnson said.
Green Cove Springs, Orange Park

Court Papers Reveal How Jarred Harrell Lured Somer Thompson
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Feb 3,2012 at 11:53 PM EST

ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- Now that Jarred Harrell plead guilty to Somer Thompson's assault and murder, court documents in the case have finally been released.

The pages detail the last moments of Somer's life.

"You're not even a human being. Your name is not Jared Harrell. Your...more name is monster," Somer's sister, Abigail told Harrell.  

After Harrell entered his plea, her family finally had the chance to face him in open court.

"I hope you have to suffer just like me and my family did," she said.  

Newly released court documents detail the last moment's of Somer's life on October 19, 2009.

One of the last people to see Somer was a contractor who told police Somer stopped to talk to him, and told him he was doing a nice job on a house.

Then classmates saw her in front of Harrell's home with her head in her hands after getting in an argument with another child.

According to the Clay County Sheriff's Office, Somer
Orange Park

Jarred Harrell Guilty in Murder of Somer Thompson
Feb 3,2012 at 5:16 PM EST

GREEN COVE SPRINGS, Fla. -- The man accused of killing a 7-year-old Florida girl whose body was found in a Georgia landfill has pleaded guilty to molesting and strangling her.

MORE: Source: Jarred Harrell Set to Plead Guilty   

Jared Harrell is accused of killing Somer...more Thompson who disappeared from her Orange Park home in 2009 while walking home from school. Her body was found in a landfill two days later.

PICTURES: Jarred Harrell Sentencing

Authorities said Harrell's mother lived on the street where the little girl walked. He was arrested a year ago in Mississippi on unrelated child pornography charges before he was indicted in Florida on first-degree murder.

Today, Judge Don Lester sentenced Harrell to several life sentences for molesting and strangling Somer. Lester allowed victims' statement from the family.

MORE: Documents released on Jarred Harrell Case

Somer's mother, grandmother, grandfather and twin
Green Cove Springs, Orange Park

Source: Jarred Harrell Set to Plead Guilty
Feb 3,2012 at 12:45 PM EST

ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- An anonymous source has confirmed to First Coast News that Jarred Harrell is set to plead guilty in a pretrial hearing Friday in Green Cove Springs.

Thursday morning Clay County Sheriff's Office PIO Mary Justino sent a news release to members of the media advising...more them, "There is the potential for significant court action in regards to the potential prosecution of this defendant."

MORE: Somer Thompson Case Timeline

Harrell was charged March 2010 with premeditated murder in the 2009 death of 7-year-old Somer Thompson.  Harrell is also charged with sexual battery on a victim under 12, and lewd and lascivious battery.

A gag order was issued by Judge William Wilkes on Dec. 14, 2010, that prohibits anyone involved in the trial from speaking publicly.  The order also prohibits the release of court documents until a final resolution.

Justino's statement said Harrell will be in court Friday, which would be the first time
Green Cove Springs, Orange Park

Tipster in Somer Thompson Case Speaks Out
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Feb 3,2012 at 12:30 PM EST

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Thousands of tips poured in after Somer Thompson disappeared, but it was just one that set justice in motion.

Now the family that came forward in 2009 is speaking out about their experience.

"The few times I've been with him, the loss in his eyes is...more enough to bring any man to his knees," he said.

Rod Buchanan has sat in silence with Somer Thompson's grandfather, hoping the company will bring him some peace. In the two and a half years since Somer's murder, he said there's little he can say.

"I hope he gets some comfort in knowing this guy is going to plead guilty and save everybody the torment of a trial," he said.  

Buchanan's daughter and son-in-law lived with accused killer Jarred Harrell in 2008. His daughter went to police after she said she found child pornography on Harrell's computer, two months before Somer's murder.

"When we opened the door to the sheriff's department, I looked at my little
Middleburg, Orange Park

Mike Lyons: In Somer Thomson's Neighborhood
Feb 3,2012 at 12:22 PM EST
Watch full coverage online at 1 p.m. today.

Dedication Day for Somer Thompson in Orange Park
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Oct 21,2011 at 6:32 PM EST

ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- Two years ago  the body of 7-year-old Somer Thompson was found in a Georgia landfill, and today a park is being named for the little girl who was abducted on her way home from school.

Somer's Sunshine Park is the name being given to the park that is on the route...more Somer walked while attending Grove Park Elementary.  The one-acre wooded lot is located at the corner of Gano and DeBarry avenues.

Her mother, Diena, said the location is appropriate.

Asked if time lessens the pain, Thompson said, "I just think you learn to deal with it like it's gonna be there.  That's just the truth of the matter."

Presently only trees are part of the landscape, but the city plans to add benches and a walking path.

Orange Park Councilwoman Marge Hutton, who conducted the ceremony, said there is no timeline yet when park improvements will be made since the town council just earlier this month made the decision. "The sooner the better," is
Orange Park

Dedication Day for Somer Thompson in Orange Park
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Oct 21,2011 at 1:49 PM EST

ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- Two years ago  the body of 7-year-old Somer Thompson was found in a Georgia landfill, and today a park is being named for the little girl who was abducted on her way home from school.

Somer's Sunshine Park is the name being given to the park that is on the route...more Somer walked while attending Grove Park Elementary.  The one-acre wooded lot is located at the corner of Gano and DeBarry avenues.

Her mother, Diena, said the location is appropriate.

Asked if time lessens the pain, Thompson said, "I just think you learn to deal with it like it's gonna be there.  That's just the truth of the matter."

Presently only trees are part of the landscape, but the city plans to add benches and a walking path.

Orange Park Councilwoman Marge Hutton, who conducted the ceremony, said there is no timeline yet when park improvements will be made since the town council just earlier this month made the decision. "The sooner the better," is
Orange Park

Dedication Day for Somer Thompson in Orange Park
Oct 21,2011 at 4:52 AM EST
ORANGE PARK, Fla. -  Two years ago  the body of 7 year-old Somer Thompson was found in a Georgia landfill and today a park is being named for the little girl who was abducted on her way home from school.

Vigil Planned for Somer Thompson Anniversary
Oct 19,2011 at 9:50 AM EST

ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- A vigil is planned to mark the anniversary of Somer Thompson's disappearance and death.

The second annual Angel-versary Vigil in memory of Somer Thompson is planned for tonight at 6.

The vigil will be at Moosehaven Village, 1701 Park Ave., in Orange Park....more

Somer, who was 7 at the time of her death, disappeared while walking home from Grove Park Elementary School in Orange Park in October 2009. Her body was found two days later in a Georgia landfill.

The following February, Jared Harrell, who lived along Somer's route home from school when she disappeared, was arrested in Mississippi on child porn charges.

He was subsequently extradited to Florida and charged with Somer's murder.  His trial has yet to begin.

In March 2010, Diena Thompson formed the Somer Thompson Foundation to help other parents deal with similar situations.
Orange Park

Inside the FBI: Ops Room Center of Every Case, Including Haleigh's
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Jul 27,2011 at 10:25 AM EST
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Behind the reinforced fence of steel off Gate Parkway is a restricted area that is by far one of the most secure places in Jacksonville. It is the Federal Bureau of Investigation, where 125 people work to protect you and solve crimes. MORE: Inside the FBI: Still on the Lookout...more for Terrorists in Jacksonville "Some of them never get solved. Some of them you think you know who did it, but it never gets solved," said Special Agent in Charge James Casey. He said one of those puzzling unsolved cases is the disappearance of 5-year-old Haleigh Cummings in 2009. "We have no reason to believe that Haleigh was taken out of state," said Casey. Haleigh was never found. He also said he doesn't know if she was taken outside of Putnam County where she was last seen. The FBI has spent countless hours and resources trying to find Haleigh. But more than two years after her disappearance, there is still no arrest. The FBI declined to say whether or not authorities have been close
Downtown Jacksonville, Avenues Deer Creek, Avondale - Riverside, Green Cove Springs, Beaches, Jacksonville North Estates, Arlington

Police Investigate Possible Predator in Woodlands Subdivision
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Jul 26,2011 at 1:56 PM EST
ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- A detective has been assigned to investigate after a stranger in a truck was seen yesterday trying to contact a child.

Harrell Trial Set in Somer Thompson Murder Case
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Jun 21,2011 at 10:53 PM EST
GREEN COVE SPRINGS, Fla. -- Jarred Harrell, the man accused of abducting and killing Somer Thompson, had his trial set today in that case for the last quarter of 2012. Judge Don Lester said both parties agreed to a trial date sometime from October to December of 2012 on the charges relating to...more Somer Thompson's death. Meanwhile, Lester also set a trial for the molestation case Harrell faces. It will start Jan. 30, 2012 with a final pretrial conference on Jan. 17. This was Harrell's third court date of the year, but the previous ones lasted just minutes. Today's lasted about 10 minutes. Harrell has not appeared at these court dates, but is represented by a public defender.
Green Cove Springs

Man Hangs Himself on Cross in Orange Park
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Apr 23,2011 at 7:50 PM EST
ORANGE PARK, Fla. - A man on a cross stirred up mixed emotions in his neighborhood. Rich McGuffie set up near Crazy Dave's on Arora Boulevard and said he was not coming down until 12 a.m. Saturday. Signs pinned up around McGuffie's set-up drew attention to the deaths of Somer Thompson and...more Christopher Barrios, two children who were murdered. The signs also called the war in Iraq and Afghanistan senseless. Some folks stopped and took pictures, while others passed by and looked on in disgust.
Orange Park

Somer Thompson Day in Clay County
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Apr 5,2011 at 11:09 PM EST
ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- The community paused to remember Somer Thompson, who would have turned 9 today. Somer was abducted and later found murdered in October 2009. She was walking home from Grove Park Elementary at the time of the abduction.  Her disappearance resulted in a community-wide search...more until she was found dead in a Georgia landfill. The Clay County Commission recently decided to make Somer's birthday special by making it "Somer Thompson Day." Schools in Clay County observed a moment of silence in her honor. Somer's mother, Diena, was touched by the moment given to her daughter. "It means a lot to have the support of the school and for everybody to take just a few seconds out of their lives to remember the little girl who was just so special and did not deserve to go so soon," said Thompson outside Grove Park Elementary, where Somer attended. Jared Harrell has been charged in connection with Somer's death.  He remains in the Clay County jail awaiting trial.
Orange Park