Harper Moore wears a sleek black dress that hits mid-calf. She relaxes in the chair, a cautious smile on her face as she greets the host. But the camera lingers, just for a moment, on the way that smile wavers.
Declan O’Brien: Can you tell us about how you and Joel met?
Harper Moore:It was New Year’s Eve, at a party in Hollywood. The clock struck midnight and around us, everyone else embraced. We were the only two not sticking our tongues down someone’s throat, and he turned to me and … he laughed and took my hand, kissed the back of it, and introduced himself. I felt like I was in one of my own movies.
Declan O’Brien: You married quickly.
Harper Moore:When you know, you know.
Declan O’Brien:Evidently not.
Harper Moore:I knew. If he’d have let me, I’d have chosen him for the rest of my life.
Declan O’Brien:So when did problems begin to appear?
Harper Moore:Looking back, I suppose they were there all along. Joel had a very set public image. He didn’t like me going against it. He didn’t like me going out without him. I didn’t have many male friends, but he didn’t even like me hanging out with my girlfriends if their boyfriends were there too. And, of course, he was upset that I was hurt over Caleb and Nadine hooking up. Joel could be possessive and jealous. But …
Declan O’Brien:But?
Harper Moore:He would have fought to keep me. God, I should have known he never would have walked out on me willingly. We might even have made it. But someone took him from me before we had that chance.
Declan O’Brien:Harper, what do you think happened to your husband?
Harper Moore:I’ve probably come up with more theories than the police at this point. I keep going round and round and round at all hours of the day. I think the most likely solution is he went off to clear his head, maybe took something he shouldn’t have, and maybe whoever gave it to him panicked and tried to cover it up when it went wrong. But I think that’s wishful thinking. Because even now, knowing what we do, I can’t imagine anyonewantingto hurt Joel. But I suppose only one person knows what actually happened. So please, whoever did this, if it was an accident or if it wasn’t,pleasecome forward. If anyone saw anything, even if you think it’s unimportant, please let us know. We just want to understand what happened. We just want the truth.
A FATAL FEUD
Jasmine McKenna:It was unfortunate timing. A transatlantic extradition would have taken days to organize, and they managed it the morning after that interview dropped. Harper was arrested just as everyone started to believe her side of the story.
Harper Moore is led off a plane, her hands cuffed before her. Her eyes are red, her skin blotchy.
Kayla Alexander:It’s been a farce from start to finish.
Lewis Stamper:I never believed she was capable of it—suspicion on her was ludicrous from the start. I’m so glad she got to say her piece before it happened.
Caleb Krause:I was actually in the camp of believing she might have had something to do with it. But an actual arrest just felt so ridiculous it suddenly became clear how little they had to go on. So many questions remain unanswered.
Jasmine McKenna:Police don’t make arrests like that unless they have a solid case. But in this instance … I think they were pressured by the profile of it. And given all the other things they had to look at—the debt, the indications of gang violence—well, there was certainly a feeling atHollywood Whispererthat maybe we, the media, were to blame, that we’d swept the police up in the drama of it all as much as we did the general public.
Ivan Drozdov:I didn’t believe a word of the interview, and I still didn’t believe Harper killed her husband.
Nadine Heywood:To be honest, I don’t know how anyone could watch that interview and think for a moment that Harper did this.
May 2004
Harper Moore Officially Charged with the Murder of Joel Ingram
Joel Ingram’s Murder: What Do We Know So Far? A Timeline of Events from His Last Public Appearance to Harper Moore’s Trial
Harper Moore’s Necklace, Pictured Below, Found in Same Forest Where Joel Ingram’s Body Was Buried
Trial Date Set for July in Joel Ingram Murder Case
Nadine Heywood Seen Celebrating in London Ahead of Harper Moore’s Trial: “Of course I had to be here. I’ll be in that courtroom too. I want to watch that witch burn.”
June 2004
NADINE WOULD NOT PRETEND IT WAS HARDER FOR HER than Harper. She did not face the indignities of prison: of being stripped and hounded, her freedom taken and placed into isolation for her own safety.
