The mother of Ryan Harris knows nothing will bring her daughter back but has found small comfort in knowing that her daughter’s killer’s life has been disrupted.
The mother of Ryan Harris knows nothing will bring her daughter back but has found small comfort in knowing that her daughter’s killer’s life has been disrupted. Sabrina Harris and the United for a Cause organization sent a letter to the Menard Correctional Center’s warden requesting Floyd Durr’s transfer. Durr had been doing time in the prison for the rape and murder of the 11-year-old girl. His two brothers, Eddie and Eric Durr, are also locked up in Menard for sex crimes. “Although, we as a citizen, may not understand the inner working of the criminal justice system, we do know that there is supposed to be some sort of restitution in terms of having a small sense of comfort for the victim’s family at knowing a convicted, habitual sexual predator is incarcerated for (an) extended period of time; but not in this case…We recently learned that Floyd is doing time at Menard Correctional Center alongside his brothers…Ryan’s life was taken at the hands of Floyd, and now her mother cannot hold, see, nor talk to her ever again. Yet, of the seven maximum security facilities in Illinois, Floyd is able to spend his remaining years of life institutionalized with his family –– living, laughing, and safe at Menard Correctional Center…Respectfully, we are asking you to give serious consideration to separating these brothers,” the letter dated January 21, 2009, stated, in part. Durr was transferred from Menard to the Stateville Correctional Center on Feb. 24, said a spokesperson for the Illinois Dept. of Corrections, but declined to say if the move was a result of the letter. “Anytime transfer requests are received, either from the victim’s or inmates family, they are always reviewed carefully,” said Derrick Schnapp, spokesperson for the state’s prison system. Ryan was raped and beaten to death a decade ago near her Englewood home. Her July 1998 murder made national headlines because two boys, ages 7 and 8, were initially arrested and charged with the crime. At that time, they were the youngest murder suspects in the United States. Semen samples found in the girl’s underwear, which were stuffed in her mouth, cleared the boys of the savage attack two months later. In April 1999, Durr was charged with her death. He was already in custody for allegedly raping three girls on separate occasions. ______ Copyright 2009 Chicago Defender. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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