FL- Julie Ann Backstrom, 29, Cocoa, 11 February 1987

[backofmymind88]

From The Orlando Sentinel: A body found Wednesday along a busy highway northwest of Cocoa has been identified as that of Julie Ann Backstrom, a 29-year-old Cocoa nurse, officials said Thursday.

A county medical examiner said Backstrom died from a gunshot wound to the face. Brevard sheriff's spokeswoman Joan Heller said investigators have no suspects and no motive in the slaying.

"Right now investigators are talking to neighbors and friends and trying to . . . determine a motive," Heller said.

Backstrom, who moved to Cocoa from Minnesota about three years ago, lived in a duplex at 662 Leo Drive with her 8-year-old daughter Chelsie, according to a family member.

She was a certified nurse's aide who worked for several health-care agencies in the county, the family member said. She also worked as a private nurse.

Her parents, who live in Cocoa Beach, said they last saw Backstrom Monday night. They said their daughter spent Tuesday caring for a handicapped woman on Merritt Island.

A Cocoa couple driving east on State Road 528 about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday saw the body on the south shoulder of the road just east of the Interstate 95 overpass, Heller said.

Officials said they believe Backstrom was killed early Wednesday and dragged about 90 feet from the highway to a shallow ditch.

BODY FOUND WAS THAT OF COCOA NURSE

Unsolved Homicides : Brevard County Sheriff's Office
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Julie was my second cousin who was horribly murdered, and I unfortunately never had the chance to meet her. Our family has yet to find answers for her murder. Brevard County posted this video in 2019, which gives me hope that they have not forgotten about her case. I do not have any photos of her other than the DL photo, but I could reach out to relatives for more.

'Cookin Up Justice' Visits Main Street Philly in Titusville, Seeks To Solve Cold Case of Julie Ann Backstrom

 

[PayrollNerd]

View attachment 275149

From The Orlando Sentinel: A body found Wednesday along a busy highway northwest of Cocoa has been identified as that of Julie Ann Backstrom, a 29-year-old Cocoa nurse, officials said Thursday.

A county medical examiner said Backstrom died from a gunshot wound to the face. Brevard sheriff's spokeswoman Joan Heller said investigators have no suspects and no motive in the slaying.

"Right now investigators are talking to neighbors and friends and trying to . . . determine a motive," Heller said.

Backstrom, who moved to Cocoa from Minnesota about three years ago, lived in a duplex at 662 Leo Drive with her 8-year-old daughter Chelsie, according to a family member.

She was a certified nurse's aide who worked for several health-care agencies in the county, the family member said. She also worked as a private nurse.

Her parents, who live in Cocoa Beach, said they last saw Backstrom Monday night. They said their daughter spent Tuesday caring for a handicapped woman on Merritt Island.

A Cocoa couple driving east on State Road 528 about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday saw the body on the south shoulder of the road just east of the Interstate 95 overpass, Heller said.

Officials said they believe Backstrom was killed early Wednesday and dragged about 90 feet from the highway to a shallow ditch.

BODY FOUND WAS THAT OF COCOA NURSE

Unsolved Homicides : Brevard County Sheriff's Office
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Julie was my second cousin who was horribly murdered, and I unfortunately never had the chance to meet her. Our family has yet to find answers for her murder. Brevard County posted this video in 2019, which gives me hope that they have not forgotten about her case. I do not have any photos of her other than the DL photo, but I could reach out to relatives for more.

'Cookin Up Justice' Visits Main Street Philly in Titusville, Seeks To Solve Cold Case of Julie Ann Backstrom

Welcome to Websleuths! I am sure the kind and knowledgeable people on here will love to help you. Take a look at this link and see if you'd like to become a Verified Insider for this case. It is a pretty easy process. The benefit is you can provide information without a Main Stream Media (MSM) link. You'll still need to follow the Terms of Service (TOS) but being a VI is especially helpful.

More pictures are good too and details to the timeline also.

Verification Process for Professional or Insider Posters

The Rules

 

[PayrollNerd]

So the car was located 2 days later in a business parking lot. What was that business address? Interesting that it wasn't in an apartment building parking lot, on the side a road, in a pond, etc.

Did they dust the car for fingerprints? Apparently, no matches in CODIS or if so, no public release of info?

As to where she was found:
In the map below I've added a red X. This is the only canal on the south east corner of the interchange. I suspect the perp chose this location because they were headed southbound.

was discovered lying in a canal located on the south side of the eastbound lanes of SR 528, approximately 1,000 yards east of Interstate 95.

Look at the distance from Mims, FL to where the interchange of SR 528 & I-95 is. The driver was southbound...... to where?

Unsolved Homicide of Julie Ann Backstrom

On February 11, 1987, Julie Ann Backstrom, was discovered lying in a canal located on the south side of the eastbound lanes of SR 528, approximately 1,000 yards east of Interstate 95.

The victim’s vehicle, a 1982 Plymouth Champ, blue in color, was found parked in a business parking lot in Mims, Florida, on February 13, 1987.

Any persons providing information in reference to this case may be eligible for a reward up to $5,000.00.

Unsolved Homicides : Brevard County Sheriff's Office

 

[PayrollNerd]

Fast forward to 00:03:33 to hear about the case. Everything prior to that is about the restaurant.

'Cookin Up Justice' Visits Main Street Philly in Titusville, Seeks To Solve Cold Case of Julie Ann Backstrom

 

[Mikeyisme]

I was the person that found Ms. Julie on the side of the road. My boyfriend was driving, I looked and saw her bare feet hanging out of her jeans. I told him I saw someone laying in the ditch. He didn’t believe me. I made him turn around. He drove back around and parked in the median, got out of the car, grabbed his pistol (he just got off reserve duty) and went and tried to see if she needed help. We weren’t sure if someone was just trying to get someone to stop for nefarious reasons.
I stayed at the car, I was scared to approach her. He tapped her foot, said, hey. Hey. No answer. Then he lifted her hoodie and saw the exit wound. She was shot in the face. He came back and told me what he saw. We approached DOT workers, it was before cell phones, and asked them to call it in. We left our information. I asked him to take me to see my mom, who worked at the hospital in Rockledge. I was so shaken. He dropped me off. Deputies were at his house before he got home.
NOT ONE SINGLE OFFICER HAS EVER ASKED ME A SINGLE QUESTION. Not one. Not even sure what my boyfriend told them. ( he apparantly had pot in the car, I found out later) so, not sure what he told them. HOW IN THE WORLD CAN THEY NOT ASK THE PERSON WHO FOUND HER HOW SHE WAS FOUND???? Are you kidding me? I’m married to a retired police officer. It’s the first thing you do.
the old BF told me they even said that it was impossible for me to see her from the road, but I did. It was almost as if she was calling me to see her. It was cold out, and I think it happened earlier that morning before we were traveling back to Brevard County from Volusia County on 528, as BF was told it was a pretty recent event.
This case has bothered me from the day I found her. Her family needs closure. I hope they have peace. I need closure. I hope they find the person who did this. I think about her often. It still is fresh in my mind from the day it happened.
I don’t know if I would have anything else to offer to figure out who did this to her, but you’d think they’d want to speak to the person that saw her laying over into the ditch. Thanks for reading.

 

[Mikeyisme]

So the car was located 2 days later in a business parking lot. What was that business address? Interesting that it wasn't in an apartment building parking lot, on the side a road, in a pond, etc.

Did they dust the car for fingerprints? Apparently, no matches in CODIS or if so, no public release of info?

As to where she was found:
In the map below I've added a red X. This is the only canal on the south east corner of the interchange. I suspect the perp chose this location because they were headed southbound.

was discovered lying in a canal located on the south side of the eastbound lanes of SR 528, approximately 1,000 yards east of Interstate 95.
View attachment 275179

Look at the distance from Mims, FL to where the interchange of SR 528 & I-95 is. The driver was southbound...... to where?
View attachment 275180

Unsolved Homicide of Julie Ann Backstrom

On February 11, 1987, Julie Ann Backstrom, was discovered lying in a canal located on the south side of the eastbound lanes of SR 528, approximately 1,000 yards east of Interstate 95.

The victim’s vehicle, a 1982 Plymouth Champ, blue in color, was found parked in a business parking lot in Mims, Florida, on February 13, 1987.

Any persons providing information in reference to this case may be eligible for a reward up to $5,000.00.

View attachment 275178

Unsolved Homicides : Brevard County Sheriff's Office

The X is incorrect. When I was coming off of I-95 and merging onto 528, we came over the overpass and as we were coming down the overpass, on the right-hand side of the road is where I found her. You have the x on 95. It looks nothing like that nowadays, but back then it was just a come off 95 then over a little overpass and then you’re on 528 east (if that makes sense)

 

[mst]

According to the description, the person would have been traveling north to mims on 95 from Cocoa