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Aiden Fucci Penned 'Apawlagy' Letter To Tristyn Bailey's Family And His Own Parents Before Being Sentenced To Life

Aiden Fucci, who admitted to stabbing Tristyn Bailey 114 times in a grisly 2021 attack, submitted the letter to the court as part of a pre-sentencing defendant's packet.

By Christina Coulter
Aiden Fucci Pd

Aiden Fucci apologized to the family of Tristyn Bailey, the schoolmate he stabbed to death in 2021, along with the community and his parents in a jailhouse letter penned before he was sentenced to life in prison on March 24.

The now-16-year-old addressed Judge R. Lee Smith in the March 12 missive, obtained by Law & Crime, writing he was "sorry [he] brought all this pain on everybody" although he "[knew his] apawlagy (sic) will not fix anything or bring her back." 

"I'm sorry that you diden't (sic) get to know her that long," the convicted killer expressed to Bailey's family and friends. "You did not have any long relationship's (sic) with Tristen (sic) and for that I'm sorry."

RELATED: Florida Teen Sentenced In 13-Year-Old Tristyn Bailey's Fatal 2021 Stabbing

Forrest Bailey, Tristyn's father, summarily rejected the boy's sentiments in his victim impact statement on March 20:

“I want to be clear, your insincere apology is not accepted,” he said. “At no point in time have I seen any remorse.”

The letter was filed by Fucci's attorneys in St. Johns County Circuit Court as part of the defendant's sentencing memorandum. Fucci pleaded guilty on Feb. 6 to killing 13-year-old Tristyn Bailey, just before jury selection began in his murder trial. Therefore, Judge Smith handed down his sentence without a jury recommendation after hearing several days of victim impact statements.

But despite Fucci's efforts to show remorse for the grisly killing, during which he stabbed Bailey 114 times, Smith sentenced the teen to life in prison with a sentence review in 25 years when he'll be 41 years old - the harshest possible punishment available for juvenile offenders.

An apology letter by Aiden Fucci

Smith said that the case was "probably the most difficult and shocking case that this county has dealt with." He noted that the teen was of "average maturity," according to testimony from a psychologist, and had a "fairly normal" home life, leaving little excuse for killing his classmate for "no reason" to "feel what it was like to kill someone."

The teen reserved the lengthiest passages in the error-riddled, two-page letter for his own mother and father. 

“And for my Dad i’m sorry that he had a bad spot in his work because of me,” Fucci wrote. “I miss being outdoor’s (sic) with my Dad and Brothers. I miss the fun we had like fourwheeling, paintballing, going on the long car trips. Dad your (sic) made things fun like the tarp to the fourwheeler so we could slide on the tarp behind. Dad your (sic) special because you made fun out of nothing. Love you.”

“To my mom i want to send my apawlagy’s (sic) as well,” Fucci concludes. “I’m sorry that she had to move her house because people were sending threats to the house and my family. And that my little Brother and Sister had to chage [sic] school’s [sic] because of me. Mom now i miss your lemon peper (sic) chicken. I miss your hug’s [sic]. I miss you. The longer im [sic] in here the more i forget the more memories i Lose. I’ll never forget you love me.”

Fucci's mother, 35-year-old Crystal Smith, was charged with tampering with evidence for allegedly scrubbing blood from his jeans, per home surveillance footage reviewed by police. Later, both the pants and the sink where Smith washed them tested positive for Bailey's blood. Her case is still pending.

Jail records show that Fucci was moved from Duval County Jail in Jacksonville to Suwannee Correctional Institution in Live Oak Sunday. 

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