FILE 735 / 17 September 2026 / 183 MIN / full

A Web Of Deceit, Sex & Murder

Keeling, VirginiaListen

The town

N ↑Town centre (approximate places)
Static locations; no street basemap. Places and details. OpenFreeMap © OpenMapTiles Data from OpenStreetMap.

It's in southern Virginia, way southern Virginia, right in the central part... right in the meat of Virginia. This is in Pittsylvania County. about 0:06:09

History, in brief

Town note

The town was named for James C. Keeling, who owned a store on the site and was the first postmaster.

about 0:07:07

Town note

James C. Keeling was the son of Thomas and Margaret Keeling, who were born in Ireland; the family became prominent in Danville, about 20 minutes away.

about 0:07:42

2019

On 28 August 2019 three people were found shot to death in a house on Keeling Drive; 18-year-old Bernard was arrested after a chase in which he ran through the streets naked.

about 0:08:04
All 4 history facts

Town note

The town was named for James C. Keeling, who owned a store on the site and was the first postmaster.

about 0:07:07

Town note

James C. Keeling was the son of Thomas and Margaret Keeling, who were born in Ireland; the family became prominent in Danville, about 20 minutes away.

about 0:07:42

2019

On 28 August 2019 three people were found shot to death in a house on Keeling Drive; 18-year-old Bernard was arrested after a chase in which he ran through the streets naked.

about 0:08:04

The figures, as told

Religious

36.9%

Biggest faith: Baptist, 22%

about 0:14:15

Who lives here

White 71% · Black 29%

Ethnicity can overlap race.

Crime / national average

Property crime
exactly average

about 0:21:18

Violent crime
▲ about one third above the average

about 0:21:28

Money

Median home value$135,000
Two-bedroom rent$790
Median household income$65,956
Cost of living79
All figures and comparisons, as told in 2026

Population

"1,200"

Comparison: "zip code 24566". No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:12:23

Median age

"48.1"

Comparison: "about ten years older than the national average". Direction: above.

As told in 2026 about 0:13:34

Married people

"about 59%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:13:43

White residents

"71%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:13:53

Black residents

"29%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:13:53

Religious people

"36.9%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:14:15

Baptist

"22%"

Comparison: "no other faith cracks 6%". No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:14:27

Unemployment

"a little bit low"

Comparison: "under the national average". Direction: below.

As told in 2026 about 0:14:42

Median household income

"$65,956"

Comparison: "within five grand of the national average". No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:14:44

Cost of living

"79"

Comparison: "100 is the regular average". Direction: below.

As told in 2026 about 0:14:58

Median home cost

"$135,000"

No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:15:04

Average two-bedroom rent

"$790"

Comparison: "almost $1,500 in the rest of the country". No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:15:39

Foreclosure auction price, three bed two bath, 1,404 square feet on 5.23 acres

"$150,200"

Comparison: "sold as is, assumed occupied". No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:16:12

Three bed one bath, 960 square feet on 0.76 acres

"$189,000"

No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:17:00

Four bed three bath, 3,665 square feet on 78.45 acres

"$800,000"

Comparison: "after a $50,000 price cut". No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 0:17:33

Current value of the murder house, three bed two bath, 1,080 square feet on 5.01 acres, built 2002

"$118,500"

No direction stated.

As told in 2026 about 3:03:31

Property crime

"exactly average"

Comparison: "the average". Direction: about the same.

As told in 2026 about 0:21:18

Violent crime

"about one third above the average"

Comparison: "the average". Direction: above.

As told in 2026 about 0:21:28

The reviews

3.0 / 5 · average of 6

3.2 stars

“3.2 stars from 69 reviews, which the hosts call not good.”
about 0:09:05

5 stars

“A common, peaceful area to live and a very family friendly place to raise kids.”
about 0:09:13

3 stars

“There is nothing in the town but land; the only things to do are bowling and the movies, and the people are nosy and racist.”
about 0:09:23

3 stars

“Born and raised there, knows every corner and hangout, loves the area and wants to bring success back, but the future does not look good and people say get out while you can.”
about 0:09:51

2 stars

“Crimes are getting worse, with shootings, drug busts and robberies instead of the area blooming.”
about 0:10:56

2 stars

“When the reviewer's son had an accident the ambulance took 45 minutes to arrive because the crew were lost.”
about 0:11:40

In Virginia

Closest episodes

  1. The CSI EffectCollinsville, Virginia · 31 December 202256 km / 35 miShow on map
  2. Serial GrannyBurlington, North Carolina · 11 June 202673 km / 45 miShow on map
  3. Murder For My LoveLynchburg, Virginia · 20 November 202576 km / 47 miShow on map
  4. Cousins, Lovers & KillersSummerfield, North Carolina · 27 July 202380 km / 50 miShow on map
  5. We Will Dig Up That Basement!Vinton, Virginia · 24 September 202081 km / 50 miShow on map

The story

In the early hours of 30 October 2002, Pittsylvania County sheriff's deputies were sent to a trailer on Loop Road in Keeling, Virginia, a remote community in the south of the state. Deputies found Julian Clifton Lewis Jr., a 51-year-old electrician at the Dan River Mill, alive but shot repeatedly with a shotgun. He was in pieces, moaning, and kept repeating the word 'baby'. When asked who had done it, he said, 'my wife knows who done this to me.' He died minutes later of extensive blood loss; the medical exer found that he had taken between 45 minutes and an hour to die. In the next room his son, Charles James 'CJ' Lewis, 25, an Army Reservist and security guard who was due to deploy to Iraq, had been shot eight times and was already dead.

The scene made little sense. There was no forced entry and nothing had been ransacked or taken. Five or six spent shotgun shells lay around Julian but none at all in CJ's room, which suggested two weapons and two attackers. The family pit bull had been locked in the middle bedroom. A deputy overheard her on the telephone saying, 'I told CJ about leaving that back door unlocked.'

Julian had been born in Danville on 1 January 1951, served in the Army in the Vietnam era and worked as an electrician at the Dan River Mill. He married Joyce Dale Evans in 1972 and they had three children, Jason, CJ and Kathy. Joyce died on 26 January 2000 after years of illness, and Julian sank into a depression so deep that he stopped eating and Kathy had to sit and watch him finish meals. She was 33, he was 49, and she told an acquaintance, Debbie Anderson, that she was using him for money because he bought her things.

She had an IQ of about 72. In December 2001 Jason was killed in a car accident, and Julian received $200,000 from his son's life insurance, which he placed in a Prudential Securities account that only his signature could touch.

CJ, meanwhile, had been called up in August 2002 for deployment to Iraq.

On 23 October she gave the men $1,200 for guns, and a friend, Antoine Bennet, bought a 9mm rifle and two 12-gauge Mossberg shotguns without knowing what they were for. The first plan was to ambush Julian on his drive home from work, make it look like a robbery, and then kill CJ when he came home for the funeral. Traffic and another vehicle stayed too close to Julian's truck and the attempt failed.

She then telephoned her former mother-in-law and her best friend before the police arrived.

What broke the case was the lunch. Campbell told investigators that Julian had carried the same blue and white cooler to work every day for years and never used a paper bag. Police searched the men's trailer and found the two shotguns, two pairs of rubber household gloves carrying primer residue and the shell casings that matched the ones in the house.

The Virginia Supreme Court rejected her proportionality argument in March 2004, and the Fourth Circuit rejected the claim that she was too impaired to plan the murders in June 2010. Governor Robert F. McDonnell refused clemency, and the Supreme Court declined a stay by seven votes to two. Julian and CJ are buried at Schoolfield Cemetery in Danville.

The case

Murders of Julian Clifton Lewis Jr. and Charles James 'CJ' Lewis

Victims

Julian Clifton Lewis Jr.. Electrician at the Dan River Mill, Vietnam veteran and husband; shot repeatedly and bled to death over about an hour.
Charles James 'CJ' Lewis (25). Julian's son, an Army Reservist and security guard at Unique Packaging, due to deploy to Iraq; shot eight times.

Accused and outcomes

As told in the episode, on 17 September 2026.

Accused

Accused

Accused

Accused

Accused

Outcome

Other people

Jason Clifton Lewis. Julian's oldest son, killed in a car accident in December 2001
Joyce Dale Evans. Julian's second wife, who died on 26 January 2000
Mike Campbell. Julian's boss at the Dan River Mill, whose evidence about the lunch cooler broke the alibi
Lieutenant Michael Booker. CJ's commanding officer in the Army Reserves
Keith Icem. County sheriff's investigator who worked the case
JT Barrett. Investigator who worked the case with Icem
David Grimes. Commonwealth's attorney who came to the scene
Bobby DeMont. Family acquaintance who heard explain the insurance before the murders
Antoine Bennet. Bought the guns for the two men, unaware of the plot
Robert F. McDonnell. Virginia governor who refused clemency

The timeline

  1. January 1st, 1951 Julian Clifton Lewis Jr. is born in Danville. (Danville)about 0:23:31
  2. 1972 Julian marries Joyce Dale Evans in North Carolina. (North Carolina)about 0:39:52
  3. April 16th, 1977 Charles James 'CJ' Lewis is born at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. (Fort Campbell)about 0:32:44
  4. January 26th, 2000 Julian's wife Joyce dies after years of illness.about 0:40:36
  5. March or April 2000 starts work at the Dan River mill, where she meets the recently widowed Julian. (Dan River Mill)about 0:42:24
  6. June 2000 moves into Julian's house, bringing her 16-year-old daughter .about 0:43:13
  7. December 2001 Julian's oldest son Jason is killed in a car accident.about 0:50:33
  8. early 2002 Julian receives $200,000 from Jason's life insurance and deposits it in a Prudential Securities account accessible only by his signature.about 0:51:31
  9. February 2002 Julian and buy five acres on Loop Road and put a trailer on it. (Lewis trailer)about 0:52:11
  10. August 2002 CJ is called up for deployment to Iraq and takes out a $250,000 policy ng Julian as beneficiary and as secondary.about 0:53:40
  11. early October 2002 meets and on the checkout line at Walmart. (Walmart)about 1:33:26
  12. October 23rd, 2002 gives the men $1,200 for guns; Antoine Bennet buys a 9mm rifle and two 12-gauge Mossberg shotguns, which the men test-fire in a field at Ringgold. (Ringgold field)about 1:44:54
  13. October 23rd, 2002 The first plan fails: traffic and another vehicle travelling close to Julian's truck prevent the ambush on Mason Road. (Mason Road)about 2:00:27
  14. October 29th, 2002 prays with Julian, has speak to him on the phone, and packs the lunch with the note for the fridge. (Lewis trailer)about 1:50:51
  15. October 30th, 2002, about 3.15 a.m. The two men enter through the unlocked rear door; shoots Julian in the master bedroom while shoots CJ in the next room. (Lewis trailer)about 1:51:13
  16. October 30th, 2002 takes Julian's wallet and divides $300 with the men while he is still alive; goes back and shoots CJ twice more, then picks up the shells. (Lewis trailer)about 1:52:45
  17. October 30th, 2002, 3.55 a.m. calls 911 and says her husband and stepson are both dead. (Lewis trailer)about 0:55:33
  18. October 30th, 2002, 4.18 a.m. Deputies arrive; Julian says 'my wife knows who done this to me' and dies of blood loss. (Lewis trailer)about 0:57:41

Last meals

Places and phrases

N ↑Town centre (approximate places)
Static locations; no street basemap. Places and details. OpenFreeMap © OpenMapTiles Data from OpenStreetMap.

Places in the story

Public places are marked on the map.

Heard in this episode