JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 41-year-old Jacksonville man who committed one of the city’s most notorious murders when he was 14 years old will have his life sentence reviewed by a judge.
But not for a while.
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Joshua Phillips, who killed his 8-year-old neighbor, Maddie Clifton, in November 1998, was in court briefly Monday, where his attorney requested the judge push back a hearing on the sentencing review.
Judge Lindsay L. Tygart agreed. Phillips will be in court again on July 8, but the review itself could be months away.
Maddie’s murder left Northeast Florida stunned. Records show Phillips hit her repeatedly with a baseball bat, stabbed her at least nine times with a pocket knife, and then stuffed her body in the frame of his water bed.
She was found there seven days later after thousands of volunteers -- including Phillips and his parents -- spent a week searching for the missing girl.
News4JAX Crime and Safety Analyst Tom Hackney was a patrol sergeant during the search for Maddie. He said he spoke with Phillips the day before Maddie was found -- in the very bedroom where she was hidden.
Hackney called the interaction “chilling.”
“He was cool as a cucumber. He was absolutely not shocked. Our engagement with him was actually in the bedroom where she was recovered, and he sat on the bed, petting his dog, and just was as unemotional, unaffected by law enforcement being in his house. It’s chilling, thinking about it now,” Hackney said.
A year after the crime, Phillips was convicted and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
In 2017, Phillips was resentenced following a 2012 Supreme Court ruling that found mandatory life sentences for juveniles unconstitutional. Despite the resentencing, Phillips received another life sentence, with the possibility of review after 25 years.
Court documents filed in May show Phillips is formally applying for a sentence review, citing the completion of his 25-year mandatory term.
Veteran prosecutor of the 4th Judicial Circuit Bernie De la Rionda noted that during the 2017 resentencing, the judge determined that Phillips should remain in prison for life, but acknowledged his entitlement to a review.
Phillips’ request for a sentence review is in line with legal provisions allowing for such reviews after 25 years.
In his filing, Phillips states that he is acting “in good faith” and requests the opportunity to “present witnesses” during the review process.
Phillips is being held in the Duval County jail after being transported from Suwannee County Correctional for Monday’s hearing.
“This is one of those cases that stands out in terms of the impact on the community,” de la Rionda said. “I am so sorry that the victim’s family has had, is having to go through this again.“
During the 2017 resentencing proceedings, Phillips addressed Clifton’s family directly.
“I don’t pretend to know or understand your pain,” Phillips said. “Or to grasp the void that I’ve created in your lives.”
Efforts to reach Maddie Clifton’s family for comment have been unsuccessful, but any response will be included in future updates.
