Shivangi Sinha
In January 1998, the remains of a woman were discovered near Airport Way South and Royal Brougham Way in Seattle, Washington. Little was known about her identity until she was eventually identified as Olivia Smith. What made the case even more unexpected was that, as investigators worked to solve it, they uncovered links to two other killings of a similar nature in the same area. ID’s ‘Homicide Hunter: American Detective’, particularly the episode ‘Murder, Murder, Murder’, offers a comprehensive look at the investigation and how justice was eventually secured for Olivia.
Olivia Smith’s Date of Death Never Came to Be Known
Not much is known about Olivia Smith’s life before 1998. By then, she had been going through a difficult period and, according to news reports, was struggling with drug and alcohol dependency. She had been living on the streets of Seattle, Washington, and there were times when her family went long periods without hearing from her. On January 10, 1998, Olivia’s body was discovered at the bottom of an outdoor stairwell near Airport Way South and Royal Brougham Way in Seattle. She had suffered multiple stab wounds and a slashed throat, injuries that were determined to be the cause of her death.
Olivia Smith’s Killer Confessed to the Crime on His Own
After discovering Olivia’s remains, police quickly began looking into other unsolved cases in the area that bore similarities to her killing. The first was the murder of Denise Marie Harris, whose remains had been found in the “Jungle,” which was simply an undeveloped stretch of land beneath the I-5 and I-90 freeways, on September 12, 1997. Detectives soon connected the case to another similar killing: that of Antoinette Jones, whose remains were discovered in the same area on February 1, 1998. Despite the emerging links between the three cases, the investigation remained unresolved until a breakthrough came a short while later.
A man named DeWayne Lee Harris was being held at King County Jail on an unrelated robbery charge when, around April 1998, he contacted a Seattle detective and offered to lead police to the ‘real’ killer. However, when questioned, Harris confessed to all three murders. According to news reports, he described the killings as his ‘hobby’ and admitted that he got a thrill from them. In his account of Olivia’s death, he said that the two had argued over an alleged exchange of drugs for sex. Angered by the dispute, he stabbed and killed her. The exact date of Olivia’s death remains unknown. In May 1998, Harris was charged with three counts of first-degree murder and held on $5 million bail.
DeWayne Lee Harris is Behind Bars in Washington Today
DeWayne Lee Harris was convicted of first-degree murder in Olivia Smith’s killing in December 1998. He was also found guilty of the other two murders. In January 1999, he was sentenced to 94 years in prison. News reports noted that he had to be restrained to a chair following an outburst during the proceedings. Harris is now 63 years old and is being held at Clallam Bay Corrections Center (CBCC) in Clallam County, Washington. Details regarding his potential release have not been made public.
