A trial will get underway next week for the Carlsbad woman accused of killing her teacher husband just days after filing for divorce.
Starting on Sept. 10, Julie Harper, 41, will face first-degree murder charges in the shooting death of her husband, Jason. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The 39-year-old Carlsbad High School teacher was found dead among clutter inside the couple’s home on Aug. 7, 2012, while their three children sat in another room.
One child told investigators they heard their father yell and then a thump, but prosecutors allege Julie told them Jason fell off a chair.
Prosecutors say before her arrest, Julie had collected passports, birth certificates and other important papers in a backpack.
The day Jason was shot, Julie took her kids for lunch, tried to set up a playdate, stopped at a children’s activity center and then arranged for her sister to watch the children for the afternoon.
The former real estate agent-turned-suspect then surrendered herself to police at her father’s Scripps Ranch home.
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In the divorce filings, Jason was accused of abuse. A Carlsbad Police log shows a call for help made from the Harpers’ home on Badger Lane on Nov. 22, 2011.
Evidence presented at a 2012 pretrial hearing included Julie’s work resume, which listed skills like weapons handling, martial arts training and experience shooting various guns.
