MURDERED: Heather Strong Part 02 | Marion County, Florida 2009

The investigation into Heather Strong's disappearance ends in the most devastating way possible. What began as a missing person case becomes a murder trial that sends ripples through Florida's legal system for years to come.

Heather Strong was 26 years old when her life was brutally cut short. A mother of two young children, McKinzie and Zachary, she had spent years navigating a turbulent relationship with her ex-partner Joshua Fulgham while trying to build a better life for her family. Her cousin Misty, who grew up with Heather in Mississippi, described her as the sister she never had.

On February 15, 2009, in a storage trailer in rural Boardman, Florida, Heather walked into a trap. Lured by promises of hidden money, she instead found herself bound to a chair with duct tape, a plastic bag sealed over her head. According to court testimony, she remained conscious for approximately five agonizing minutes as she suffocated. Joshua Fulgham and his pregnant girlfriend Emilia Carr worked in tandem to restrain her, silence her pleas for help, and end her life.

The investigation that followed was methodical and relentless. Deputy Billings from the Marion County Sheriff's Office pieced together witness accounts, jailhouse recordings, and forensic evidence. When detectives enlisted Fulgham's sister to wear a wire, Carr's admissions unraveled completely. On March 19, 2009, Fulgham led investigators to a shallow grave on property owned by Carr's mother, where Heather's decomposing remains confirmed what her family had feared.

Both perpetrators faced justice. Emilia Carr was initially sentenced to death in 2011 by a 7-5 jury vote. Following the 2016 Hurst v. Florida Supreme Court decision declaring non-unanimous death penalty recommendations unconstitutional, she was resentenced to life without parole in June 2017. Joshua Fulgham received life without parole in April 2012. Heather's two children were eventually adopted into new families.

This episode contains audio from court proceedings and investigative interviews. Listener discretion is advised.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.

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