Somer Thompson's Mom Wants Daughter's Killer "To Die"; Diena Thompson Says She Blames Herself
Photo: Diena Thompson, mother of slain 7-year-old Somer Thompson.
"I want to see this person's face," Diena Thompson told ABC's Good Morning America. "I want them to get the death penalty. I have to be the voice for Somer."
The child's remains were found last October in a south Georgia landfill, days after she disappeared while walking home from school in the Jacksonville, Fla. suburb of Orange Park. Authorities last Thursday arrested Jarred Mitchell Harrell, a former neighbor of the Thompsons, on dozens of counts of child pornography, calling him a person of interest in the case.
Photo: Somer Thompson, 7, disappeared Oct. 19, 2009 while walking home from school.
Diena Thompson told ABC, she needs to know the truth about what happened to her daughter, saying,"I've built up so many scenarios in my head, that I honestly don't feel like anything they could tell me could be any worse than what I've already made up in my head."
Photo: Jarred Mitchell Harrell.
Thompson's attorney, Michael Freed, said his client is optimistic the arrest will help bring closure to the case, but doesn't want to overreact prematurely.
Harrell has not been charged with murder.
7-year-old Somer Thompson used to stop at Harrell's house walking home from school to pet a white dog.
"I still blame myself, you know?, said Thompson. What if I did this? Or what if this could have been done and instead of looking in the mirror and blaming myself, I'm going to have a picture of someone else to blame," she said.
Harrell left his computer behind when he moved out of the Orange Park neighborhood. His roommates turned the computer over to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office after claiming to find child pornography on it.
Harrell was arrested in Meridien, Miss. on 29 counts of child pornography, and was being held on $1 million bond.
MORE ON CRIMESIDER
February 12, 2010 - Somer Thompson Murder: Person of Interest Jarred Harrell Arrested with Child Porno
January 22, 2010 - Somer Thompson Murder: Mom Warned a Year Before 7-Year-Old's Abduction
November 4, 2009 - Reward Now $45K to Find Somer Thompson's Killer
October 29, 2009 - Sheriff: Help Me Catch Somer Thompson's Killer
October 27, 2009 - Somer Thompson Funeral: Little Girl Laid to Rest as Sky Fills with Purple
October 27, 2009 - More Than 1,000 Tips But No Leads in Somer Thompson Murder
October 26, 2009 - Somber Sendoff for 7-Year-Old Somer Thompson, Florida Girl Who Vanished After School
October 23, 2009 - Somer Thompson Pictures: Her Mother Vows Justice, A Community Vows Never to Forget
October 23, 2009 - In Somer Thompson Murder, Local Sex Offenders No Longer Suspects, Say Cops
October 23, 2009 - Somer Thompson's Mom to Killer: "We're Coming For You"
October 23, 2009 - How Police Found Somer Thompson and How They Hope to Catch Her Killer
October 22, 2009 - Somer Thompson Body Likely Found, Says Florida Sheriff
October 21, 2009 - Search for Missing 7-Year-Old Somer Thompson Leads to Body in Landfill
October 20, 2009 - Somer Thompson Vanished After School, Seven-Year-Old Girl Missing in Orange Park, Fla.