James W. Harley Jr., 38, of Lusby
UPDATE 1/29/2024: James Walter Harley, Jr., convicted of First-Degree premeditated murder in Calvert County in 2018, has lost his bid to have his sentence reduced.
Circuit Court Judge Mark S. Chandlee denied Harley’s motion for reconsideration of sentence on January 26, 2024, stating that he has “serious concerns for the safety and well-being of the community” should Harley be released.
Harley was convicted of the shooting death of his wife inside the family home in Lusby. The shooting was witnessed by Harley’s 8-year-old son. Harley fled the scene on foot. The child was found wandering through the neighborhood by nearby residents.
Harley is serving a life sentence at the North Branch Correctional Institution in Cumberland, Maryland. North Branch is a maximum security facility.
This case was prosecuted by Calvert County State’s Attorney Robert Harvey.
UPDATE 5/5/2018: On May 2, 2018, James Harley, Jr., 39 of Mechanicsville, entered a guilty plea to first-degree premeditated murder.
This plea ensured that his young son would not have to take the stand and testify against his father for the murder of his mother. This plea was only possible due to the hard work of the men and women of the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office.
Patrol Deputies arrived within minutes of the initial 911 call. First responding deputies, immediately recognized the homicide, secured the crime scene, established the perimeter and contacted the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) detectives. Detectives worked vigorously to locate this suspect. He was in custody within 24 hours of the murder.
Deputy State’s Attorney Kathryn Marsh said “I was personally impressed with CIB’s caring and dedication while working the scene and interviewing family members. I was on scene with them from 11 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. while Jennifer Morton was coordinating offsite reviewing the search warrants. CIB coordinated with the Metropolitan Police Department, the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office Special Operations Team (SOT), and the Maryland State Police.
The Sheriff’s office SOT spent hours working on grid searches, as well as searching every water hazard on the golf course for possible evidence. Detectives in CIB went above and beyond to include: escorting the juvenile victim to the funeral of his mother and stopping in to randomly play basketball with the juvenile.
Throughout the case, as recently as last week, detectives from CIB continued to locate witnesses and secure evidence whenever Jennifer Morton and I requested their assistance. Most importantly, I am truly grateful for everyone’s hard work as it saved the juvenile victim from having to testify.”
Sheriff Evans, who attended the hearing, stated, “This was a horrific event for everyone involved, particularly for the family and friends of Tanya Harley, out detectives never stopped working to ensure justice was served.” He added, “Domestic violence related homicides occur far too often, we take them very seriously and have formed numerous partnerships over the past several years, which have led to the implementation of specific protocols to assist us with identifying and addressing domestic related issues.”
UPDATE 4/30/2017: According to court documents, James W. Harley Jr., 38, of Lusby, was charged with murder, second-degree assault and use of a firearm in a felony/violent crime.
Harley is currently being held at the Calvert County Detention Center without bond.
Harley is scheduled to appear in District Court on May 24, 2017.
UPDATE 4/29/2017 @ 2:00 p.m.: James W. Harley Jr., 38, of Lusby, is in police custody at this time
4/28/2017: On Friday, April 28, 2017 at approximately 9:30 pm, units from the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office responded to a residence on Rawhide Road, Lusby, for an assist sick or injured call.
Upon arrival it was determined that Tanya Louise Harley, a 34 year old female, was deceased from an apparent gunshot wound.
Her husband, James W. Harley Jr. a 38 year old male, has been developed as the suspect.
Mr. Harley left the residence prior to deputies arriving. He has not yet been located and the police are actively searching for him.
It is unknown if he is on foot or in a vehicle at this time.
Please report any suspicious activities. Detective Mudd of the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office is the lead Detective and can be reached at 410-535-1600 ext. 2469 or [email protected].
James W. Harley Jr., 38, of Lusby
