On the tragic evening of October 19, 1979, in Richmond, Virginia, five-year-old Harvey Wayne Barton, a Black male, became a victim of a horrific crime spree that shook the city. That night, the notorious Briley brothers, along with an accomplice, forced their way into the home of Harvey W. Wilkerson, where young Harvey lived with his mother, Judy Diane Barton. The gang members bound and gagged Wilkerson and Judy Barton.
What unfolded next was a brutal series of events. Judy Barton was sexually assaulted and then shot multiple times. Harvey Wilkerson and his son, Harvey Wayne Barton, were each shot once. All three tragically succumbed to their injuries. The bodies of the victims were discovered two days later in their home on Barton Avenue. The motive for the home invasion was robbery, part of a wider string of violent crimes committed by the Briley gang throughout 1979, which included multiple murders, rapes, and robberies.
The investigation into the murders led to the apprehension of the Briley brothers: Linwood, James, and Anthony, along with their accomplice, Duncan Eric Meekins. The subsequent legal proceedings brought the full scope of their violent rampage to light. James Briley was convicted of the capital murder of Harvey Wayne Barton in the commission of an armed robbery and the capital murder of Judy Diane Barton during or following a rape. He was also found guilty of the first-degree murder of Harvey W. Wilkerson. For the capital murder convictions, James Briley was sentenced to death and was executed in 1985.
Linwood Briley was also sentenced to death for his role in the gang's crime spree and was executed in 1984. Anthony Briley, the youngest of the brothers, received a life sentence for his involvement in the Barton family murders and other crimes. Duncan Eric Meekins, who cooperated with the authorities, received a reduced sentence. The brutal and senseless murder of young Harvey Wayne Barton and his family remains a dark chapter in Richmond's history, a stark reminder of the devastating impact of violent crime.
