Julian Jefferson, the 20-year-old man charged on May 20th with the capital murder of 22-year-old Fairfield resident, Denise Lissette Ramos, has also been in trouble with the U.S. Navy.
According to Navy records, Jefferson was stationed at Naval Air Station North Island in November of 2022.
A navy spokesperson said, Jefferson, who held the Aviation Structural Mechanic Airman Apprentice (AMAA), was charged by the Navy for sexually assaulting a female Sailor in January 2023.
In November 2023, those charges were referred to general court-martial and seven months later, on May 8, 2024, Jefferson pled guilty to burglary and rape charges at a court-martial.
Jefferson was sentenced to 20 years, a dishonorable discharge, and is currently being held in the brig at Miramar.
Fairfield Police stated in a release that it, along with the Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas Rangers and the Naval Criminal Investigative Services (NCIS) worked together to uncover evidence linking Jefferson to the alleged crime in Fairfield.
The deceased body of the Fairfield women was first discovered on March 28, 2024 when the Fairfield Police Department responded to welfare concerns.
According to a Navy spokesperson, per UCMJ pre-trial confinement procedures, Jefferson was placed into pre-trial confinement in January of 2023, but was subsequently released as a result of an independent confinement hearing determination.
Jefferson was on leave at the time he was apprehended in Texas. Upon being returned to Navy custody, he was returned to pre-trial confinement pending his court martial and sentencing on May 8, 2024.
In accordance with statute and Department of Defense policy, Sailors are entitled to accrue leave, and may use their leave at the discretion of their chain of command. All Sailors are presumed innocent until their guilt is proved beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
As with any Sailor, commanding officers granting leave for Sailors accused of misconduct are expected to consider any impact the Sailor’s absence will have on the mission, the accountability process, the facts, and circumstances surrounding the request, as well as the facts of the underlying alleged misconduct.
According to Freestone County District Attorney Brian Evans, paperwork to extradite Jefferson back to Texas hasn’t been filed at this point as they await a formal indictment. He says it will probably be at least the end of June before this case goes before the Grand Jury.
