Man volunteers guilt in death of spouse

A Carlton County man pleaded guilty Friday, Sept. 8, to shooting his wife in what he termed a “mercy killing” in December 2021.

Raymond Arthur Julian, age 67, of Kalavala Township, has been in the Carlton County jail since he was arrested and charged with second-degree murder, with intent, not premeditated, for allegedly shooting and killing his wife, Tracy Julian, who was 62.

Julian was arrested after Carlton County 911 dispatch received a call at 2:35 p.m. Friday, Dec. 10, 2021 requesting a welfare check for the couple, who lived at 3665 Heiskari Road in Kalevala Township, not far from the city of Kettle River. The caller said they had received an email from Raymond Julian, stating that he planned to kill his wife. When the first deputy arrived on scene, he walked up the driveway and was greeted by Raymond Julian, who initially told him his wife was ill and in bed, but when pressed, stated he had killed her.

The case had been delayed repeatedly while the court waited for evidence to be processed by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. Friday’s hearing was originally set as an omnibus hearing to consider that evidence, but turned into a plea hearing after Julian’s attorney, Andrew Poole, presented the County Attorney’s office with a plea petition roughly 15 minutes before the hearing began.

Poole questioned Julian first on Friday, confirming he understood that by pleading guilty he was giving up the right to a trial and all that goes with it. The defendant said yes, and confirmed that he was in the state of mind to understand and enter the plea. Poole and the defendant also confirmed that Julian understood there was no guarantee of a reduced sentence with the guilty plea, with the defense noting the recommended sentence range was between 21 and 30 years.

Interviewing Julian via Zoom, prosecuting attorney Jeffrey Boucher asked Julian about the end of his wife’s life.

Tracy Julian had been dead roughly 12 hours when deputies arrived at their home, her husband said. He shot her with a shotgun that they had in the home, “as my wife requested and ended her suffering,” he told the court.

He shot her twice: “Once in the center of her back at approximately the position of her heart, and the second one was at the base of her skull approximately where her medulla oblongata would have been,” Julian said, confirming again that it was intentional.

“And was the purpose of those actions of firing those shots into Ms. Julian to … end her life?” Boucher asked.

“It was to relieve her suffering, yes, and ending her life was the only option available,” Julian responded, before continuing: “It was her wish that she not continue to endure the experiences she was having and foresaw having in the future.”

Poole asked whether Julian would define the shooting as a mercy killing.

“It was,” he responded. “It was a suicide by her with me as the instrument. So, I suppose, depending on how the legal definition if that fits, but, yes, it was definitely with her best interests at the time.”

Neither the attorneys nor Julian gave any specific details of his wife’s illness, although both attorneys explained — and Julian said he understood — that mercy killings are not a legal defense in Minnesota.

Sixth District Carlton County Judge Amy Lukasavitz accepted the guilty plea and set a sentencing hearing for 2 p.m. Dec. 18, setting aside at least two hours for expert witness testimony from a Duluth psychologist and possibly family and friends. Poole said he will request a shorter sentence than recommended in the guidelines.