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Kristin G Huggins 1970 - 1992

Kristin Gale Huggins was born on January 7, 1970 in Morrisville, Bucks County, Pennsylvania United States, and had a brother John Steven Huggins. Kristin Huggins died at age 22 years old on December 17, 1992 in Trenton, Mercer County, NJ, and was buried at Newtown Cemetery in Newtown, Bucks County, PA. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Kristin G Huggins.
Kristin Gale Huggins
January 7, 1970
Morrisville, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States
December 17, 1992
Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey, United States
Female
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Kristin Gale Huggins' History: 1970 - 1992

Uncover new discoveries and connections today by sharing about people & moments from yesterday.
  • Introduction

    Kristin Gale Huggins was born to James George Huggins (born 1944). James was born in New Jersey and Kristin had one brother. A talented mural artist, Kristin excelled while attending Pennsbury High School. On the morning of December 17, 1992, twenty-two year old Kristin Huggins drove her red Toyota MR2 sports car from her parents' home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania to the Trenton Club in downtown Trenton, New Jersey.   She intended to paint a mural, but was never able to perform that task. When Huggins did not return home on December 17th, her parents immediately reported her missing. It turned out that Ambrose Harris was determined that he would commit a holdup and enlisted Gloria Dunn to assist him. Just out of prison after serving 13 years, Harris spotted Kristin Huggins drive her Toyota into the parking lot of the Trenton Club, and announced “I’m going to get that b****.” He accosted Ms. Huggins, commandeered her car, and drove off after his accomplice, Gloria Dunn, joined them in the car. Harris drove to a deserted area under a bridge near Route One and Perry Street, where he forced Kristin Huggins into the trunk. He then drove around in the car, eventually returning to the area under the bridge. There, he took Kristin out of the trunk and raped her. He then put her back in the trunk, and shot her in the back of the head. He hid the body under a mattress in the deserted area. Harris then left to get a shovel to bury her body. When he returned, he shot her again, this time in the face, to be sure she was dead. He then dug a shallow grave in which he and his accomplice buried Kristin Huggins. The killing took place Dec. 17, 1992, and the victim’s body wasn't found until Feb. 18, 1993. Gloria Dunn -- apparently hoping to collect the posted $25,000 reward -- contacted the police months after the murder, claiming to be a psychic who could lead them to the missing young woman. Her dubious story quickly unraveled, and she confessed to her role in the kidnapping and slaying of Huggins, after leading police to her badly decomposed body. By the time he was tried, convicted and given the death sentence for her murder, Harris was already serving a life term in prison, required to spend 30 years in jail without parole as a persistent offender for an unrelated 1993 armed robbery conviction. According to news accounts, when Harris was sentenced in 1996, he was asked if he had anything to say to his victim’s parents, who were in the courtroom . Harris turned and suggested that Huggins’ parents apologize to him. His outburst caused the judge to remove him from the courtroom. Ambrose Harris remains on death row, having added another murder to his resume. While on Death Row, Harris attacked and killed another Death Row inmate, Robert “Mudman” Simon, a beefy, scraggly long-haired and long-bearded 48-year-old outlaw biker, with several previous murder convictions. Simon was convicted in 1974 for killing his girlfriend after she refused to cooperate in her gang rape by Simon’s friends and fellow Warlocks. While serving time for that heinous murder at Graterford Prison in Philadelphia, he knifed and killed another inmate in 1984. Like his future killer, Simon pleaded self-defense and was acquitted. Despite his two killings, Simon was paroled. Only 11 weeks later, Simon murdered police Sgt. Ippolito (Lee) Gonzalez in Gloucester County, New Jersey. This third murder earned him the death penalty but that was changed to life in prison without the possibility of parole after the death penalty was abolished in New Jersey in 2007. In 2020, Oxygen True Crime reported on this horrendous crime and Kristen's family's reaction. See ‘She Never Deserved It’: . See a December, update to the story, including the final disposition of the killers, at Where are Ambrose Harris and Gloria Dunn Now?.
  • 01/7
    1970

    Birthday

    January 7, 1970
    Birthdate
    Morrisville, Bucks County, Pennsylvania United States
    Birthplace
  • Ethnicity & Family History

    Kristin was Caucasian. Her father was born in New Jersey.
  • Nationality & Locations

    A native of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Kristin lived in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, She was murdered in Trenton, New Jersey at the young age of 22 and was buried in Newtown, Pennsylvania.
  • Early Life & Education

    Kristin attended Pennsbury High School in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania.
  • Military Service

    Kristen never served in the military.
  • Professional Career

    Kristin was a student and an artist - she was very talented and painted murals.
  • Personal Life & Family

    Murdered at the young age of 22, Kristin never married nor had children. Kristin Huggins Memorial Awards are offered by Temple University's Tyler College of Art as well as Pennsbury High School Partners Program.
  • 12/17
    1992

    Death

    December 17, 1992
    Death date
    Gunshot to the head
    Cause of death
    Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey United States
    Death location
  • Gravesite & Burial

    mm/dd/yyyy
    Funeral date
    Newtown Cemetery in Newtown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania 18940, United States
    Burial location
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    Memories
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9 Memories, Stories & Photos about Kristin

Where are Ambrose Harris and Gloria Dunn Now?
Kristin Huggins Murder:

Kristin Huggins was a young artist looking forward to a new job after graduation. However, her sudden disappearance had the worried family make repeated pleas for more information. Sadly, Kristin’s dead body was found a few months after she vanished. The story of how the authorities got there forms the focus of Investigation Discovery’s ‘Nightmare Next Door: The Art of Murder.’ So, let’s find out more about this case then, shall we?

How Did Kristin Huggins Die? Kristin was born in January 1970 in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. She was a graduate of Temple University’s art school in Pennsylvania and was commissioned to paint a mural at a health club in Trenton, New Jersey. The 22-year-old had been living with her parents and hoped to save up to start living on her own. On December 17, 1992, she left home at around 9:30 AM to head to Trenton for work. However, Kristin never made it back home. In fact, she never showed up for work either. Kristin’s parents reported her missing soon after checking in with family and friends. The search yielded an immediate lead when Kristin’s car was found in a tow lot in Trenton the next day. However, it was covered in mud, and the tires were slashed. There was a definite attempt to conceal evidence. In February 1993, new information led the police to Kristin’s body in a desolate area in Trenton. She was found buried in a shallow grave. An autopsy revealed that Kristin was sexually assaulted and shot twice in the head with a .22-caliber firearm.

Who Killed Kristin Huggins? After Kristin’s car was discovered, hair and other fibers were collected for forensic examination. The authorities had a break in the case when some teenagers told the officers that they had taken a ride in Kristin’s car. According to them, their uncle had told them about carjacking a woman and killing her. The culprit was identified as Ambrose Harris. By then, he was already in jail for kidnapping another woman. He also had prior convictions for assaulting several other women. Ambrose was captured on surveillance cameras trying to withdraw money from an ATM using Kristin’s card. At the time of his arrest, he had a .22-caliber gun on him that was later confirmed as the murder weapon. However, the authorities still didn’t know where Kristin was at that point. While the hair found in the car matched Ambrose, he refused to talk to the police, leaving them to figure out what happened. Then, Kristin’s parents announced a reward of $25,000 for any information regarding their daughter. This led to a tip from Gloria Dunn. At the time, she claimed to be a psychic who had a vision of where Kristin’s body was located. She led the police to a remote area in Trenton in February 1993, where the decomposed remains were found. This aroused suspicion regarding Gloria’s involvement.

Upon interrogation, Gloria admitted to being with Ambrose when the murder took place. She told the police that on December 17, 1992, Ambrose proposed they rob a local sandwich shop. However, it was raining that morning, and Ambrose only had a bicycle. When he saw Kristin pull into the Trenton health club, he decided to take the car. Gloria stated that Ambrose forced Kristin into the truck, drove to a desolate area where he raped the 22-year-old. Ambrose then shot Kristin once in the head. Gloria added that Ambrose left her body under a mattress under some bushes and they drove to his mother’s house to get shovels. They returned, dug a shallow grave, and dumped Kristin in there. Ambrose shot her again before filling the grave. The medical examiner did find dirt in Kristin’s lungs, which meant that she was possibly alive while being buried.

Where Are Ambrose Harris and Gloria Dunn Now? Ambrose’s trial began in January 1996. Throughout the proceedings, he showed no remorse and accused the court staff and spectators of being racist. Ambrose was found guilty of multiple charges that included felony murder, kidnapping, robbery, and aggravated sexual assault, among others. The defense argued that his abusive childhood was a mitigating factor. Nevertheless, Ambrose was sentenced to death, but that was changed to life in prison without the possibility of parole after the death penalty was abolished in New Jersey in 2007.

Gloria, who was about 33 years old at the time of the trial, pleaded guilty to kidnapping and robbery charges. She agreed to testify against Ambrose in exchange for a sentence of 30 years behind bars. It seems that Gloria has since been released from prison, but information regarding her current whereabouts seems scarce. As for Ambrose, he beat another inmate to death in 1999, but a jury acquitted him of murder as they ruled it was self-defense. On November 17, 2020, Ambrose died at the age of 68 while incarcerated at the New Jersey State Prison in Trenton. The cause of death was not made public.

- From the website "TheCinemaholic" written by Viswa Vanapalli on December 15, 2021.
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‘She Never Deserved It’:
Loved Ones Recall Kidnapping, Murder Of Beloved Artist

After Kristin Huggins failed to show up to her first job in the winter of 1992, police were tasked with finding a killer. young woman whose life was full of promise saw her future tragically — and violently — cut short after she found herself at the wrong place at the wrong time on a cold winter day in 1992. On December 17, 1992, 22-year-old Kristin Huggins was preparing to travel from her home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania to Trenton, New Jersey for her first real job. A recent graduate of Temple University's art school, Kristin had been hired to paint a mural at a health club in Trenton. She left for her 9:30 a.m. appointment that morning, but she failed to return home that night.

When her parents, James and Karen Huggins, noticed Kristin's car was still not in the driveway the following morning, they began to worry. They reached out to their son, who was the one who recommended Kristin for the job opportunity, to see if he'd heard from her, at which point they learned that he'd gotten a call the previous day from the health club manager, informing him that Kristin had never shown up for her appointment that morning. "For her to miss it, it was not her character," Suzette Parmley, a correspondent with the NJ Law Journal, told Oxygen's “Buried in the Backyard” airing Thursdays at 8/7c on Oxygen.

After the concerned parents reached out to Kristin's best friend Adina Glorioso and found she also hadn't heard from Kristin, they reported their daughter missing. Police met with the family and began to investigate. Because Kristin was excited about beginning her art career, they quickly ruled out the possibility that she'd disappeared of her own accord. "The parents were devastated. They knew there was trouble here," Joe Constance, a retired Deputy Chief with the Trenton Police Department, told producers.

A lead in the case came the following day when police received troubling news: Kristin's car had been found, but she wasn’t in it. A patrolman in Trenton who'd heard about the case remembered seeing a car that fit the description of Kristin's vehicle in a local tow lot. It turned out the car was hers — but the vehicle was in bad shape. It was dirty, the license plates had been removed, and all four tires were flat. "Mud was packed in the inside and outside of the car, which tells us that someone is trying to cover up possible evidence, like fingerprints, from a crime," Constance said.

Kristin's personal belongings, like her art supplies and purse, were also missing from the vehicle, but authorities were able to retrieve evidence in the form of hair and other fibers from the car. Detectives interviewed those in Kristin's circle and learned from her best friend that a classmate named Daniel had been relentlessly pursuing Kristin and that his interest had turned into harassment. Kristin had told her friends that he wouldn't take no for an answer and his behavior had begun to scare her.

Police brought Daniel in for questioning and were disturbed by his behavior: While speaking to authorities, he had a nonchalant demeanor and the smile never fell from his face, authorities recalled. He also refused to take a polygraph test, further sparking suspicion. However, after police found that his alibi — he was working and hanging out with friends when Kristin went missing — checked out, they had no choice but to rule him out as a suspect.

Meanwhile, Kristin's loved ones were wracked with anxiety. "We didn't know where she was. We all knew something was wrong," Adina Glorioso told producers. As the investigation wore on, police tried a new tactic and traced Kristin's journey to New Jersey on the day that she disappeared. Spotting a convenience store along her presumed route, they decided to try their luck with the store manager, who told them that he didn't remember seeing Kristin but gave them hours of security footage to review.

The tapes provided a huge break in the case: Kristin was caught on camera buying coffee and cigarettes on the morning that she disappeared. She didn't seem distressed and didn't talk to anyone; her car was also still clean at that point, which led authorities to conclude that whatever had happened to her happened after she left the store and was headed to her appointment.

Police spoke to the health club manager Kristin was supposed to meet with, who recalled seeing a man on the property the morning that Kristin was supposed to arrive. He asked the man why he was there, and the stranger claimed that he'd come to retrieve his bike. It was a promising lead. Police feared Kristin could have come into contact with this mysterious stranger in the parking lot of the health club, so they quickly did a canvassing of the area in an attempt to find him. However, that proved fruitless, as did the family's local search for Kristin. "Honestly, we felt in despair. You're searching and you're searching and you can't find this person, and the longer it went on, the more painful it became," Glorioso said.

As the weeks dragged on, Kristin's parents made the decision to appear on television for information regarding their daughter's disappearance. Mere days later, police received a valuable tip: A few teens told authorities that they'd seen Kristin's parents' plea and felt guilty. They admitted that they'd ridden in Kristin's car with their uncle, who told them that he'd carjacked the vehicle from a girl and killed her. They were afraid to come forward because they feared their uncle would hurt them, too, if they did. "We couldn't believe what we heard from these 14-year-old kids," Constance told producers.

The teens said that their uncle had even shown them Kristin's ID and other cards in her wallet, and that he had tried, unsuccessfully, to use her debit card to withdraw money from an ATM. Finally, police had a real lead: Ambrose Harris, a man who'd been convicted for assaulting five other women, both before and after he was believed to have attacked and killed Kristin. "He was a serial rapist and a serial kidnapper," Carmen Salvatore, a retired detective with the Trenton Police Department, told producers.

In a strange turn of events, Harris had already been arrested for kidnapping another woman after his encounter with Kristin, so he was already in jail. However, when they tried to question him about what had happened to Kristin, he refused to talk. Still, they were able to test his hair and found that it matched the hair found in Kristin's car, and fibers from his clothing were found to match remnants recovered from her car. Surveillance cameras had also captured him driving Kristin's car to an ATM, where he tried to use her debit card to withdraw money from her account.

Unfortunately, police still did not know where they could find Kristin's body, but another break in the case came after Kristin's parents offered a $25,000 reward for information on their daughter.
A woman named Gloria Dunn who claimed to be a psychic came forward in February 1993 and told police that she'd had a premonition of where Kristin's body could be found. She led authorities to a deserted part of Trenton, deep in the woods, where they first found a shoe sticking out of a shallow grave before finally locating the hastily-buried body of a deceased woman: Kristin.

As police waited for the autopsy report to come in, they proceeded to question the alleged psychic about how she came to know where Kristin's body could be found. When police pressed her for answers, she suddenly blurted out that she did not shoot Kristin — a strange admission for someone who had no way of knowing that Kristin had been shot, as the autopsy results had not yet come back. Police concluded then that Gloria must have been present during Kristin's murder, and she eventually admitted as much and was arrested for murder. Meanwhile, Kristin’s loved ones were devastated that her case had come to such a tragic conclusion.

The autopsy report revealed that Kristin had been shot twice in the head, and there was dirt found in her lungs, suggesting that she'd been buried alive. "It's soul-crushing. We knew something was wrong, but you never think your friend is dead. You/ hope they're not," Glorioso said. "My best friend was there one minute and she was gone [..] She didn't deserve it. Kristin's loved ones were finally able to lay her to rest and three years later, Harris stood trial for her murder. Dunn testified against him in exchange for a reduced sentence of 30 years, and laid out the series of events for the court.

According to Dunn, Harris had come up with a plan for the two of them to rob a sandwich shop, but they needed a car to do so. When they saw Kristin pull into the parking lot of the health club on that fateful morning, they struck: Harris forced Kristin into the trunk of the car. Harris decided that they needed to kill her because she was making too much noise, and so they drove to a secluded area in the woods, where Harris raped Kristin and then shot her twice in the head. He then dug a shallow grave and threw her inside of it and, because she was still alive, he shot her again in the head.

Harris was convicted and sentenced to death. However, his sentence was changed in 2007 to life without the possibility of parole when New Jersey abolished the death penalty.

- Oxygen True Crime, September 29, 2020 by Shahron Lynn Pruitt
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Kristin Huggins - 1987 Pennsbury High School
Kristin Huggins - 1987 Pennsbury High School
The Senior Class 1987 Pennsbury High School yearbook photo. It reads:
Kristin Huggins Sports Nite, Who's Who, Interact Club, Foreign Lang. Club, Winter Track, National Honor Society, "MIK - IT'S BEEN GREAT SHARING LEADERSHIP OF THE C.C.C. WITH YOU!! NOW YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT YOUR YARD! C.K.
Date & Place: at Pennsbury High School - East 705 Hood Blvd, in Fairless Hills, Bucks County, Pennsylvania 19030, United States
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I’m so sorry sweet girl. I know you’re at peace now. Fly High, Angel. ❤️
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God bless u. Mayalkofthe. Good great works deeds things u have done spk 🙏🏿🙏🏿🕊️🕊️🕊️😍💔💔
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Iam glad they gt justice
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🕊️🙏🙏💔💔💔💔
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Kristin rip. God bless. May all. Of the. Good great works deeds things u have done spkrfru u 🙏🏿🕊️💔🙏🕊️
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What a sad ending for the young and beautiful artist, May she Rest In Peace 🙏I would like to know was she one of the artist involved with painting the mural on the side of NJ State Prison (second & Cass St). I heard this by someone and it would be nice to know more about her art work and their locations. Thank you
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STATE v. HARRIS
Supreme Court of New Jersey.
STATE of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Ambrose A. HARRIS, Defendant-Appellant.
Decided: August 02, 2000

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

The facts of this case are set forth in Harris, supra, 156 N.J. 122, 716 A.2d 458.   We draw from that opinion specific facts that are material to the proportionality review, expanding on our discussion as necessary.

On the morning of December 17, 1992, twenty-two year old Kristin Huggins drove her red Toyota MR2 sports car from her parents' home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania to the Trenton Club in downtown Trenton, New Jersey.   She intended to paint a mural, but was never able to perform that task.   When Huggins did not return home on December 17 th, her parents immediately reported her missing.

 Huggins' car, mud-covered and with its tires slashed, was found by authorities the next day.   The news media reported on her disappearance, and a reward of $25,000 was offered for any information to assist in finding her.   Huggins' body was eventually recovered in February 1993, approximately two months after she disappeared.

The investigation concerning Huggins' disappearance did not focus on defendant until January 1993.   At that time defendant's nephew informed police that defendant had bragged to him about hijacking a red Toyota MR2 and having robbed and “knocked off some white girl.”   Defendant's nephew, as well as other witnesses, also reported that defendant was seen driving a red MR2 with a Pennsylvania license plate on the night of December 17 th.   Defendant's nephew even admitted to taking the red Toyota MR2 for a ride that night.   In addition, a bank ATM security video showed, and bank records confirmed, that defendant attempted to withdraw $400 from Huggins' account on December 17 th.

A major break in the investigation occurred in February 1993 when Gloria Dunn led police to the location of Huggins' body, claiming to have seen the body in a psychic vision.   The body was badly decomposed.   Dunn made numerous inquiries regarding the reward money in return for her information.

Eventually, however, the police learned that Dunn knew the location of Huggins' body because she was with defendant at the time of the murder.   Dunn identified defendant as the murderer and provided numerous statements to the police concerning the circumstances surrounding the murder.   Some of those statements were inconsistent.   Also, Dunn failed to reveal, until approximately a year-and-a-half into the investigation, that defendant sexually assaulted Huggins.   Nevertheless, she consistently implicated defendant as the triggerman who murdered Huggins.   At trial, she featured as the State's eyewitness to the murder, providing the only direct evidence linking defendant to the crime.

To rebut Dunn's account, the defense focused on attacking her credibility based on inconsistencies in her testimony compared to  earlier statements made during the investigation.   The defense highlighted Dunn's professed involvement in the crime, her failure to attempt to escape or to seek help for Huggins when she was presented with ample opportunity to do so, and her delay in reporting the murder to the police.   The defense also attacked Dunn's credibility by reminding the jury that she received a reduction in charges in exchange for testimony against defendant.   Defendant never testified.

The evidence presented to the jury may be summarized as follows.   Dunn testified that in late November 1992, defendant asked her to join him in robbing a Trenton luncheonette.   She agreed.   They were to meet the morning of December 17, 1992, to carry out the holdup.   That day, defendant arrived at 8:00 a.m. on bicycle at the agreed upon location, armed with a .22 caliber revolver.   He and Dunn then set out to commit the robbery.

Dunn complained about the fact that it was raining that morning, so defendant said he would “carjack” someone to avoid walking in the rain.   Dunn then asked what defendant would do with the person he carjacked and, in response, defendant said he would tie up and abandon a black victim, but would kill a white victim.1

As they approached the area of the Trenton Club, Huggins drove her red MR2 into the Club's parking lot.   Defendant then said to Dunn, “I'm going to get that b****,” and on his bicycle he followed Huggins' car to the rear driveway of the Club.   Dunn remained in the front area of the premises.   Defendant returned, driving the car with Huggins sitting in the front seat.   Dunn testified that defendant then ordered her into the front seat to sit with Huggins on her lap.

Defendant drove the red MR2 to a deserted area under the Southard Street Bridge in Trenton.   Dunn testified that defendant was concerned about the appearance of two African-Americans  driving in a two-passenger sporty vehicle with a white female passenger.   He asked Huggins to show him how to operate the front-trunk on the car.   After her explanation, defendant told Huggins to get into the trunk of the car.   He ignored her offer to sit on the floor of the back of the car, and instead forced her into the tiny trunk, where she was required to lie in a fetal position.

Defendant then drove back to the Trenton Club to retrieve his bicycle.   This was corroborated by two workers at the Trenton Club who testified that they saw defendant at 9:15 a.m. walk to the rear of the parking lot and return with a bicycle.   Throughout her confinement in the trunk of her car, Huggins pleaded for help.   Huggins' pleas for help infuriated defendant.   He commented to Dunn that he should have killed Huggins earlier.

Defendant drove the car back to the area under the Southard Street Bridge.   He ordered Huggins out of the trunk and over to the passenger side of the car by the open door.   While still outside the car, defendant ordered Huggins to take off her clothes.   He ignored Huggins' cries for mercy because she was a virgin, and instead made derogatory comments to her during the sexual assault.   According to Dunn, defendant anally raped Huggins, despite her pleas to stop because of the pain.   Dunn testified that Huggins was crying and shaking very badly.

Defendant ordered Huggins back into the trunk.   Dunn testified that defendant then contemplated his next act, eventually deciding that he would kill Huggins.   He opened the trunk of the car and ordered her out of the trunk again.   As Huggins tried to climb out of the trunk with Dunn's help, defendant shot Huggins in the back of her head using the .22 caliber revolver.   Huggins had been a prisoner for approximately two hours by the time defendant shot her for the first time.

Defendant then dragged Huggins' body a short distance from the car to hide it under a discarded mattress located behind some bushes.   He and Dunn then drove to defendant's mother's home to retrieve two shovels.   When they returned to the crime scene, defendant proceeded to where he had hidden Huggins.   He then  removed the mattress lying on top of her, shot her point-blank in the face to ensure that she was dead and threw the mattress back onto her body.

Defendant and Dunn then walked to a nearby area where they could dig a hole.   They brought Huggins' body to the shallow grave they had dug, placed her in it face down and filled the grave with dirt.   Defendant also threw some debris consisting of old clothes, rocks and a crate onto the grave site.

Before leaving, defendant went through Huggins' belongings taking $30 in cash and her ATM card.   Testimony at trial revealed that defendant drove around in Huggins' car throughout the remainder of December 17, 1993.   He tried to sell the car in New York City, but was unable to consummate the sale.   As stated earlier, bank records and an ATM video revealed that defendant attempted to use Huggins' ATM card following her murder.

Huggins' disappearance was covered extensively by the news media.   Despite having knowledge of the news coverage, Dunn did not immediately notify police about what she knew because defendant repeatedly threatened her that if she ever told anyone about what had happened, he would “come looking” for her and harm people that were close to her.   She claimed that those threats delayed her from reporting the incident to the police.   Defendant also told Dunn that he abandoned Huggins' car behind Mercer County Community College, with its tires slashed.   He covered the car with mud to conceal any fingerprints.

Experts testified that Huggins died as a result of two gunshot wounds to the head.   The prosecution's experts opined that Huggins may have lived as long as one hour after the first shot, or possibly ten to thirty minutes after the second shot.   They noted that an autopsy found dirt in the victim's lungs.   A defense expert rebutted that, testifying that she died immediately following the last shot.   Dunn's testimony, however, supported the contention that Huggins did not die immediately.

 Defendant was arrested ten days after the murder on an unrelated matter.   At the time of the arrest, the .22 caliber pistol used during the murder of Huggins was found on defendant.   Defendant was charged with kidnapping and sexual assault incidents involving four other women that had occurred both before and after the murder of Huggins.

A Mercer County Grand Jury returned an indictment on June 8, 1994, that charged defendant with purposely or knowingly causing the death of Kristin Huggins by his own conduct, felony murder, first-degree kidnaping, first-degree robbery, first-degree aggravated sexual assault, second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, third-degree theft, fourth-degree credit card theft and third-degree attempted unlawful use of a credit card.   On July 1, 1994, the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office served notice of the following aggravating factors in support of a death penalty prosecution against defendant:  (1) the murder was committed for the purpose of escaping detection, apprehension, trial, punishment or confinement for another offense committed by defendant;  and (2) the murder was committed while defendant was engaged in the commission of, or attempt to commit, robbery and/or kidnaping and/or aggravated sexual assault.

Defendant requested a change of venue from Mercer County.   Ultimately it was determined that the case would be tried to a jury selected from Burlington County.   The trial commenced in January 1996.   On February 20, 1996, the jury found defendant guilty on all counts.

In the penalty phase, the State relied only on the evidence that it had submitted during the guilt phase to support the two asserted aggravating factors.   The defense submitted 180 mitigating factors concerning defendant's early childhood and the abuse he endured during his childhood.   Presumably for strategic purposes, the defense decided not to address defendant's adolescent years during which he had compiled an extensive juvenile record.   The trial court consolidated all those mitigating factors into one omnibus mitigating factor.

 Three defense experts were offered during the penalty phase:  a mitigating expert, a child psychologist and a psychiatrist.   All concluded that defendant was raised in an extremely dysfunctional family environment.   His mother was abused by his father.   She had married defendant's father when she became pregnant, but he eventually abandoned the family.   Defendant's mother neglected him, and she and her boyfriend physically abused him.   The experts also testified that defendant was exposed to sexual activity at home.   At a young age, defendant became involved in violent conduct and sexual activity, and experimented with drugs.   School officials could not control his antisocial behavior.   At one point, defendant was diagnosed as mentally r******* and institutionalized.   A mood-elevating medication was prescribed.

One expert concluded that defendant had manifested a “rage against women” because of his experiences as a child.   The expert relied on the fact that defendant was often neglected as a child and had experienced a great deal of difficulty in school, which eventually led to his institutionalization in a state mental hospital.   The expert concluded that he should have been classified as having a “severe conduct disorder” at age thirteen.

Defendant admitted to drug use in his pre-sentencing reports, stating that he enjoyed smoking marijuana on a regular basis.   Those reports also indicate that, from as early as 1970, defendant entered and re-entered the criminal justice system on a regular basis.   He accumulated twelve convictions as an adult, spending less than one year out of prison during the entire period from 1974 to 1992.

Defendant has not shown any remorse for his actions.   Throughout the trial, defendant acted with contempt toward all involved in this case, including his own attorney.   He smirked at the State's witnesses while the jury was present.   His lack of remorse was poignantly underscored during his non-capital sentencing hearing when, contrary to the court's repeated instructions, he addressed Mr. and Mrs. Huggins and told them they owed him an apology because of his conviction.

 On the capital counts, the jury found beyond a reasonable doubt that the two aggravating factors outweighed the sole omnibus mitigating factor and sentenced defendant to death.   On the remaining non-capital charges, defendant was sentenced to a consecutive sentence that totaled two life terms plus sixty-five years, with an eighty-two-and-a-half year parole disqualifier.

This Court affirmed defendant's conviction for capital murder and his death sentence, as well as his convictions and sentences for the non-capital charges.  Harris, supra, 156 N.J. at 133, 716 A.2d 458.   On direct appeal, defendant requested proportionality review pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3e, and the issue was reserved for this separate proceeding.  Harris, supra, 156 N.J. at 133, 716 A.2d 458.
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Kristin Huggins
Kristin Huggins
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