Few answers on Tenn. soldier found dead
With his red hair, freckles and sunny disposition, everyone at home knew Hayden Harris as “Opie.”
The kid from rural Tennessee was affectionate, thoughtful – “a good Christian boy,” said Claire Hallissy, a family friend. He had an infectious smile and one passion in life: to join the U.S. Army.
For the 20-year-old, that dream came to a mysterious end last weekend in the snowy woods of Sussex County, 1,000 miles from his home in Guys, Tennessee, and 300 more from Fort Drum, New York, where he’d been stationed since July 2019. Almost a week after Harris’ body was found, officials still haven’t explained a motive for the alleged killing or why the soldier ended up buried near a secluded cul-de-sac in Byram Township.
Byram Mayor Alex Rubenstein said he was “still trying to wrap my head around” what may be the first homicide recorded in the township in almost a century.
Township firefighters discovered Harris’ body on Saturday, a gunshot wound to his head, a day after he’d been reported missing from the base in upstate New York.
Authorities arrested another Fort Drum soldier, Private Jamaal Mellish, and the Sussex County Prosecutor’s Office, working in concert with the Army and New York officials, said he would be charged with murder, kidnapping and weapons possession charges.
So far, no charges have been filed. Sorting through a case that involves multiple jurisdictions has taken time, said Sussex County First Assistant Prosecutor Gregory Mueller. As of Wednesday evening, Mellish, 23, remained in the Oneida County jail in Oriskany, south of Fort Drum.
Mellish is being held on a military law violation, according to the jail’s website. Oneida County officials didn’t return phone calls and the Army referred questions to the Sussex County prosecutor.
According to Mueller, Harris met with Mellish in Watertown, New York, last week to exchange a Ford Mustang for Harris’s white 2017 Chevrolet Silverado.
A dispute between the men may have played a role in why Mellish “abducted” Harris in the Silverado, Mueller said. Mellish allegedly forced Harris on a more than 300-mile trek south to Brooklyn, Mellish’s hometown.
Mellish then drove Harris across state lines another 48 miles, and for reasons that still haven’t been revealed, found himself at the cul-de-sac in Byram, Mueller said. There, investigators believe Harris was shot to death. A juvenile, who hasn’t been named, was also in the truck and has provided statements to police, the prosecutor said.
A military farewell
It was supposed to be a joyous occasion after a grim year: Byram firefighters were rolling through the roundabout at the end of Ross Road on Saturday, continuing their annual Santa ride through the township.
The winding street passes just a sprinkling of houses set back deep into the trees. New fallen snow blanketed the neighborhood as a costumed volunteer sat perched atop the engine.
Around 2 p.m., the group spotted an “eerie sight,” said Fire Chief Todd Rudloff. Several items had been scattered along the cul-de-sac: food containers, sneakers, an umbrella, a folder and several receipts. Blood stained the snow.
“It was the feeling that something wasn’t right,” the chief said.
Harris’ body was found roughly 200 feet into the woods, nearly buried under snow.
A receipt at the scene from Watertown, New York, led to an internet search and reports about a missing soldier.
Rudloff said he and his fellow firefighters knew the soldier would have to be honored. So they grabbed the first flag they could find on the flagpole at a nearby firehouse.
Harris was wrapped in the flag as his body was carried out of the woods.
‘I love you’
Harris grew up in Guys, a town of roughly 500 on the Tennessee-mississippi border. It’s a lot like Byram in some ways: rural, quiet, close-knit.
Harris had visited his hometown just two weeks ago, visiting friends and family as well as teachers at his alma mater, Mcnairy Central High School. His high school English teacher, Vicki Flowers, said few students come back after graduation, but Harris made a point to return at least three times since his senior year ended in 2018.
After catching her up on his life, Flowers remembered, Harris stood up, hugged her, and said “I love you.”
That wasn’t unusual, according to Hallissy, whose son played baseball and graduated high school with Harris.
“He was just a very sweet, kind, good Christian boy,” she recalled in an interview. “He was a typical country boy ... It wasn’t uncommon for him to say ‘I love ya’ at the end of a conversation.”
Harris, who was promoted to corporal following his death, joined the Army in March 2019. He arrived at Fort Drum in July of that year, joining the 10th Mountain Division after graduating from Air Assault School.
“I remember he was so excited to join,” Hallissy said.
One particular moment in Harris’ senior year stood out for both Hallissy and Jeff York, who manages the Facebook page for the Mcnairy Central High Bobcats.
York, who wrote for the local newspaper and often attended sporting events, said Harris had played just five innings for the baseball team that season. But when the squad ran out of pitchers in a championship game in 2018, Harris had to take the mound.
“It was like a Disney movie: Opie pitched a great game, and when they won, his teammates hoisted him up in the air,” York recalled. It was the first championship win for the team in over six years.
No one had a bad word to say about Harris, and he, in turn, “trusted everyone,” Hallissy said.
Highwaymen in the woods
Byram has a similar feel, said Mayor Rubenstein, who’s lived in the township for 30 years.
“You go into Shoprite and you always run into someone you know,” he said. “We are a small-town-usa kind of place.”
Ross Road, where the body was discovered, is several turns off of Route 206 and not a place one would drive to accidentally, Rubenstein said. The “sleepy, bedroom town” rarely sees violent crime and hasn’t had a homicide for decades, he said.
First Assistant Prosecutor Mueller said he could not recall a single murder in the township since his hire in 2005.
Rubenstein said he and other officials combed township records and found what they believe to be the last known murder: The Cat Swamp hijacking and killing of 1921.
According to an account in the New Jersey Herald, employees of the Sussex Print silk mill in Newton were driving their truck on Cat Swamp Hill the morning of June 14 that year when six highwaymen, masked and armed, took the men into the woods and bound and robbed them.
Albert Koster, who was riding a motorcycle to work, drove near the scene and was mistaken for a policeman – since lawman of the time frequently rode motorcycles. The men reportedly shot Koster and buried him in the swamp with his head stuffed deep in the mud.
The killers were eventually captured. Two were electrocuted and four others were sentenced to life imprisonment, which was later downgraded to 20 to 30 years of hard labor.
“He was a typical country boy. ... It wasn’t uncommon for him to say ‘I love ya’ at the end of a conversation.”
Claire Hallissy Family friend
An emotional visit
The Harris family did not respond to a request for comment. But according to Chief Rudloff, they visited Byram Township on Tuesday, escorted by fire and police to the scene where their son’s body was discovered.
“They wanted to see where their son took his last breath,” Rudloff said. “It was pretty emotional.”
The family thanked the first responders, with the visit allowing some sort of closure for the Harrises as well as police and fire members.
“We talked to them, we hugged them and we all said a prayer together,” Rudloff said.
Staff writer Sean Lahman of the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle contributed to this report.
Lori Comstock can also be reached on Twitter: @Loricomstocknjh, on Facebook: www.facebook.com/loricomstocknjh or by phone: 973-383-1194.