In 1989, 13-year-old Joe Sullivan and friends apparently burglarized a house in West Pensacola, which he does not deny. However, he was later convicted of going back to the house a at a later time, armed with a knife, and raping the 73-year-old woman who owned the home. One of Sullivan's co-defendants pointed the finger at him, telling law enforcement officials that Sullivan was the person who sexually assaulted the woman. At the time of the rape, Sullivan already had quite a juvenile history. The judge who presided in the case said that he would "send him away for as long as I can, he is beyond help. The juvenile system has been utterly incapable of doing anything with Mr. Sullivan."
Twenty years later, Sullivan, now 33, continues to deny that he was the rapist. The victim's identification of him was weak. She described him as having "kinky hair and he was quite black and he was small." She was unable to verify for certain if his was the voice she heard when her assailant told her, "If you can't identify me, I may not have to kill you."
Sullivan was tried as an adult and sentenced to life imprisonment. Now, his health is deteriorating. He uses a wheelchair due to his multiple sclerosis. While in prison, he has been in all kinds of trouble, with over 100 incidents reported of contraband, fighting, and weapons violations.
The case has been appealed to the United States Supreme Court, which has not yet decided whether to hear the case. His criminal defense attorneys do not claim that Sullivan is innocent - only that he should have the opportunity for parole at some point in the future. They also say that he is mentally challenged, which has contributed towards the prison violations.
Sentencing minors to life in prison without parole is uncommon. In the U.S., no such sentences have been imposed on any minor under the age of 15 in the last decade, with the exception of sentencing for homicide crimes. Sexual assault jurisprudence for offenders under that age is not well developed at this time, because it is such an uncommon crime.
