Neither Madison County justice nor Christy Campbell held Justin Campbell accountable until Christy fatally shot him.
She killed herself too, on March 16, by driving her car into Silver Lake. She took infant son Zachary with her, but paramedic Todd Zobrist rescued him.
Six older children escaped from their home, which she had set on fire.
Police found Justin in the home.
He had learned years ago that the justice system didn’t always take domestic violence seriously, and neither did Christy.
He slapped her in the head in 2005, while she was pregnant, court records show.
Collinsville police reported the offense as domestic battery, a misdemeanor.
State’s attorney William Mudge, now a circuit judge, filed a misdemeanor charge but dismissed it and charged Justin with aggravated battery, a felony, on account of her pregnancy.
Circuit judge Charles Romani set bond at $30,000.
Mudge then reduced the charge to a misdemeanor, and Justin pleaded guilty.
On the criminal information sheet, someone blacked out the word aggravated before the word battery, and wrote the word domestic above it.
Someone also blacked out a clause stating that he knew she was pregnant.
Romani assessed a fine and costs, $500 together, and placed Justin on probation for 12 months.
Two days later, Mudge moved to revoke probation for failure to pay the fine.
Justin agreed to pay it off at $25 a month.
In 2006, Justin and Christy married.
In 2007, Mudge filed a citation to collect what Justin still owed.
Chief Judge Edward Ferguson set a hearing, but Justin didn’t appear.
After Justin missed the next hearing, Ferguson issued a warrant for his arrest.
Officers arrested him and brought him to an initial felony appearance.
Ferguson set a probation revocation hearing a week later, but didn’t hold it.
The case docket shows no further action.
In 2010, Christy petitioned to dissolve the marriage.
She dismissed the petition two months later.
On April 25, 2012, she petitioned for a protective order.
She gave separate addresses in Glen Carbon, hers at 15 Dogwood Lane and his at 45 Cobblestone Lane.
She listed five children, ages two to nine, and she marked boxes including them as protected parties.
“Justin Campbell abuses me on a weekly basis,” she wrote.
“He is on drugs.
“When he is under the influence of drugs he becomes extremely physically, mentally and emotionally abusive.
“He has pushed me several times. He has choked me, he has punched me in my head, he has slapped me in my head, he has pushed me into bricks.”
Associate judge Duane Bailey issued an order effective until a hearing on May 10.
Next day, she petitioned again to dissolve the marriage.
She alleged “physical and mental cruelty and Justin’s drug use and Justin’s unwillingness to provide for his family.”
She asked to make him responsible for half of their credit card bills and half of charges past due for rent, water, power, and day care.
She asked for alimony, retirement benefits, and college educations. She asked for $100 a week while on maternity leave.
Two weeks later, at a hearing with Justin present, Christy asked Bailey to let the protective order expire.
In the dissolution proceedings, Christy complied with an order to take a class at Children First Foundation in Belleville, and Justin did not comply.
Associate judge Elizabeth Levy ordered Justin to pay temporary child support of $500 every two weeks.
Levy held a hearing in September 2012, and Justin did not appear.
“Father found to be in indirect contempt for failure to file his certificate of completion,” Levy wrote.
She set a hearing for that December, and wrote that he could purge his contempt by filing a certificate prior to the hearing.
He didn’t appear, so Levy set a hearing for February 2013.
He still didn’t show up, so Levy entered default judgment for Christy.
Levy never followed through on Justin’s contempt.
That August, Christy moved to increase child support.
She wrote that Justin would take a promotion in Baton Rouge, La.
“Justin Campbell is approximately $9,206.82 behind in child support,” she wrote.
She wrote that his employer hadn’t turned half of his wages over to the state disbursement center, due to tip reporting.
Associate judge Neil Schroeder held a hearing on child support that October, and Justin didn’t appear.
Christy presented his pay stub for two weeks, showing gross earnings of $1,846.15 and net income of $1,568.53.
She said he was in arrears in the amount of $10,644.82.
Schroeder entered an order requiring Justin to appear at the next hearing and bring his last three pay stubs.
“All parties MUST appear,” Schroeder wrote.
Justin didn’t.
Schroeder set support at $784 every two weeks, half of Justin’s last paycheck.
He ordered Justin to pay $100 a month on arrearages, giving him about 10 years to catch up.
Christy moved for more child support again in January 2014, asking for half of large monthly bonuses that Justin said he would receive.
Next she moved for supervised visitation.
“Justin Campbell II stated that Justin Campbell pinched and punched him,” she wrote. “Cristian Campbell stated that Justin Campbell choked him.”
Associate judge Keith Jensen held a hearing on both motions that March, and granted relief to Christy when Justin didn’t appear.
In spite of all, when Justin returned from Louisiana, Christy took him back.