When faced with a violent crime, many of us would either be petrified or panic.
Keeping your composure in the face of a tragedy is not an easy feat for anyone, especially a child.
Fiver-year-old Tia Hernlen, however, remained calm enough to call 911 despite the unimaginable horror of finding her parents dying from gunshot wounds inflicted by an unknown intruder in the dead of night.
So, what happened to Tia Hernlen’s parents that tragic night in March 2005?
Tia Hernlen’s parents, Julie and Aeneas, were murdered as they slept in the bedroom next to their five-year-old’s room by David E. Johnson in an unfounded act of revenge.
A Loving Family of Three
Julie Morgan met Aeneas Hernlen in Daytona Beach, Florida, while he was working as a lifeguard.
Their love for the beach and surfing led them to move to St. John, Virgin Islands, for a while, where they married in 1997.
They welcomed little Tia in 2000 and settled in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, with their dog and three cats in a sunny, yellow single-story house with lime-green trim and a pink door.
The loving parents treasured little Tia, and the three were inseparable. They valued education and safety, teaching her what to do and how to act in the case of an emergency.
Their dedication to their little girl paid off as she remained calm enough to call 911 that horrific night when she awoke to gunfire and the unimaginable nightmare of seeing her parents shot in their bedroom.
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Misguided Act of Revenge
In December 2004, the Hernlen family began experiencing repeated harassment and violence by 33-year-old David Edward Johnson.
Afraid for their safety, Julie applied for a restraining order against him on January 11th, 2005.
Johnson was arrested in November 2004 on charges of cultivating marijuana and possession of steroids and drug paraphernalia.
Paranoid, Johnson believed his former friends, Julie and Aeneas, had reported him to the authorities and were the reason for his arrest and his upcoming court date on May 9th, 2005.
Local authorities repeatedly informed Johnson that the Hernlens had no involvement in his arrest. Yet, he continued to blame them for his troubles.
To the Hernlens’ dismay, their restraining order request was denied, despite Julie having kept a detailed log of every incident involving Johnson, including dates, times, and descriptions of his threatening behavior.
According to the judge, there was “no proof of violence” and expressed that “it was too hard to prove stalking with the outlined allegations.”
Disheartened, Julie called her best friend, Michelle. Inconsolable, she told her friend that, “if I’m not here next week, this is the reason why and this is who killed me.”
A Horrific Night
In the early morning hours of Monday, March 28th, 2005, as the family slept, Tia was violently awakened by the sound of gunshots.
Frightened, she made her way to her parents’ room next door, only to discover them lifeless with several gunshot wounds.
At 2:58 am, five-year-old Tia had the clarity of mind to pick up the phone and call 911, just as her mother had taught her.
On the other end of the line was the 911 dispatcher, Donna Choufani, who immediately alerted first responders to the crime.
The Call
Donna kept Tia on the phone and tried to make her feel safe until the police arrived on the scene.
While talking about Tia’s dog, her three cats, and the color of their home, Donna managed to gather vital information from her.
Tia told her there was blood coming out of her dad’s mouth; there was also blood on her parents’ bedroom floor and a plant.
When Donna asked Tia if she had heard a gun, she replied, “Yes, and I see a bullet lying on the floor. I think it’s a bullet.”
At one point, Tia told the dispatcher, “I don’t see a gun but I’m scared…can you send a deputy down here?”
Of her interaction with Tia, Donna said, “This poor baby had woken up to a living nightmare. And the one person she needs is her mommy.”
County Deputy Brian Williams arrived within four minutes of the call. Donna was still on the phone with Tia as she instructed her to open the door for the police.
Deputy Williams took Tia in his arms and placed her in his patrol car, where she sat quietly for about an hour.
Later, Williams said, “I felt so bad for her; she didn’t cry. But I wanted to cry for her.”
The Findings
Inside the home, officers found Julie, 31, had already passed away, and Aeneas (29) was critically injured.
He was transported to Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach and was placed on life support. He passed away the following day.
Several hours after Tia’s call, investigators were able to link Johnson to the double shooting.
When officers arrived at his home armed with a search warrant they discovered a deceased Johnson from a self-inflicted wound to the chest.
He left no suicide note.
Inside the home, investigators found newspaper clippings of his November arrest pinned to his refrigerator along with documents for his upcoming trial.
The investigation also revealed that Johnson entered the home through the back door while the family slept.
His weapon of choice for the deranged act was a 9mm pistol.
The Aftermath
Little Tia went to live with her maternal grandparents, Richard and Nancy Morgan, in Central Florida.
There, surrounded by her loving family and community, Tia began to process her trauma and pain with the help of therapy and counseling.
Concerned for her well-being, Tia’s grandparents kept her out of the public eye and protected her from the media coverage of her parent’s murders.
Shortly after the incident, a trust fund was created by the community at a local credit union.
Today, Tia Hernlen has become a champion for mental health as she shares her painful experience through interviews and public speaking engagements.
She strives to encourage others to rise above adversity through hope and resilience. She is a survivor of what happened to her parents from a misguided act of revenge.
Sources
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/5-year-olds-911-call-for-help
https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=628842&page=1#:~:text=The%20girl%20told%20the%20operator,and%20died%20the%20next%20day.
https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2005/04/01/trust-fund-created-for-orphaned-911-caller
https://www.pomc.org/murder-wall/julie-morgan-hernlen-aeneas-hernlen
https://itshifting.com/tia-hernlen
https://www.flsheriffs.org/uploads/star/THE_SHERIFFS_STAR_VOL_49,_NO_3,_MAY-JUN_2005.pdf
https://forum.thehunterslife.com/index.php?topic=2685.0
https://medium.com/@coffeecrimeandcosmetics/i-said-mommy-daddy-and-they-didnt-even-answer-5-year-old-finds-her-parents-dead-in-their-d9c0e6ceb9e0
