Kriti Mehrotra
When socialite Lita McClinton Sullivan was shot to death at the doorstep of her Atlanta, Georgia home on January 16, 1987, it honestly left the entire nation shaken to its core. That’s because, as explored in ABC’s ’20/20: A Puzzling Murder,’ it took over 11 years for this 35-year-old’s perpetrators to even be identified, let alone arrested, charged, tried, and convicted. We say “perpetrators” because two individuals were responsible for her demise: her estranged husband, James “Jim” Sullivan, and the man he had hired to shoot her dead, Phillip Anthony “Tony” Harwood.
Phillip Anthony “Tony” Harwood Was Incriminated By His Girlfriend
Although not much regarding Phillip’s early years, upbringing, or lifestyle is publicly available, we do know he was a North Carolina native working as a long-haul truck driver back in the 1980s. Therefore, of course, it was relatively normal for him to travel from one state to another on an almost daily basis as well as be away from home for long periods without any issues. According to records, this is how he came to know Florida millionaire Jim Sullivan while moving some of his furniture, which eventually led them to have an acquaintance-ship of sorts.
However, everything changed for Phillip when Jim’s estranged wife was fatally shot at the entrance of their Atlanta, Georgia, home by someone bearing a dozen long-stemmed pink roses. As per official reports, it was around 8:15 in the morning when the killer rang her doorbell to lure her to the front door, just for her to be able to see nothing but the flowers when she looked through the peephole. So, as she opened the door, the shooter immediately took action and fired directly at her before turning away to escape the scene as quickly as possible.
What’s imperative to note is that a hearing for Lita and Jim’s impending divorce was scheduled for later that same day – she had filed for it a day after finding another woman’s lingerie in their bed. Nevertheless, it wasn’t until Phillip’s then-girlfriend came forward in 1998 to state she was right there with him when Jim handed him $25,000 to kill Lita that authorities were able to connect all the dots. They then came to believe the victim’s estranged husband wanted her dead so as to protect his assets as well as reputation despite already having a prenup in place.
Phillip Anthony “Tony” Harwood Pleaded Guilty
It was in May 1998 that Phillip was indicted on charges of malice murder, felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, and two counts of burglary in connection with Lita’s shooting death. As for Jim, he allegedly fled the nation shortly following his hitman’s apprehension and wasn’t caught until around four years later (in 2002) at a vacation resort all the way in Thailand – he was hoping to escape justice. Though coming back to Phillip, despite having initially pled not guilty to the charges against him, he decided to negotiate with prosecutors following Jim’s arrest and their clear declaration that they would be seeking the death penalty if he is found guilty after trial.
Therefore, in February 2003, Phillip pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of one count of voluntary manslaughter in exchange for testifying against his co-defendant, James “Jim” Sullivan. In addition, he was also given a sentence of 20 years in state prison, with credit for time already served — 4+ years. This deal actually held even though he didn’t technically hold up his end of the bargain. After all, when he took the stands during Jim’s trial, he maintained his innocence, asserting that while he did take money to kill Lita, he was not the gunman who pulled the trigger on her.
Nevertheless, in March 2006, Jim was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the charge of murder. Since then, though, Phillips’ defense attorney has told People that while he “proclaimed his innocence… we would not have entered a plea if we did not believe that the state had sufficient evidence of guilt to sustain a conviction. However, as in any case where the state’s potential punishment is the death penalty or life in prison, the sentence Mr. Sullivan received, the pressure to accept a plea deal is strong.” In other words, Phillip maintains his innocence to this day.
Phillip Anthony “Tony” Harwood is a Free Man Leading a Quiet Life Today
Phillip did file an out-of-time appeal in 2009 in the hopes of getting an early release, but it was denied. So, it was only on May 25, 2018, that he was released from the medium-security Coastal State Prison in Savannah, Georgia, after having served his sentence in full, meaning he is now a free man. He was under probation for a while, considering he spent two decades removed from society, but even that has since concluded, and it appears as if he has since chosen to stay well away from the limelight. Thus, all we know is that this 70-something-year-old is now based in Mount Pleasant, North Carolina, where loved ones surround him every step of the way as he does his best to move on from the past to the best of his abilities.
Read More: Jim Sullivan: Where is Killer Husband Now?
