Appeal denied for man sentenced to life after brutal murder of 14-year-old

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) - The criminal judgment was affirmed Thursday for 24-year-old Arthur Kollie.

Kollie appealed the judgment entered after a jury found him guilty of murder, robbery, and aggravated assault. Kollie argued his rights to a public trial and against double jeopardy were violated and the district court erred in instructing the jury and admitting a video of the victim. The Supreme Court ruled, that’s not the case.

16 months after 14-year-old Jupiter Paulsen was stabbed, choked and strangled for nearly 30 minutes in the Party City parking lot, Kollie received his sentence of life in prison without the possibility parole. It took jurors less than two hours back in September to find Kollie guilty on all three counts of murder, robbery and aggravated assault in the June 4, 2021 beating.

Paulsen was skateboarding from her dad’s home to her mom’s home when prosecutors say Kollie followed her into an alley and began the attack. Paulsen’s parents said she made the trek several times without any issues. Paulsen was found by a City of Fargo garbage truck driver while she was lying on the ground with Kollie kneeling over her in the Party City parking lot.

Prosecutors say the attack began shortly after 6:30 a.m. and ended just before 7:00 a.m. Prosecutors say Jupiter was stabbed 25 times, strangled and stomped on. Medical examiners ruled her death a homicide caused by manual strangulation.

“Instead of protecting her, the defendant murdered her in cold blood for really, what is the worst of reasons, the contents in her backpack,” Cass County Assistant State’s Attorney Ryan Younggren said.

Younggren urged the court to hand down the maximum sentence which he says he’s only asked for a handful of times in his more than two decades as a prosecutor. His plea was a one Jupiter’s family echoed.

“He took a beautiful out of this world and he deserves to pay with his life, but seeing as we don’t’ have the death penalty here, life without parole, I believe, is just,” Antonia Johnson, Jupiter’s mom said.

“You can give him another slap on the wrist and I’ll take matters into my own damn hands,” Robert Paulsen, Jupiter’s dad said.

“He should really think about how many people he has hurt and how many people have lost someone so precious to the world,” Jupiter’s older sister Phoenix said.

Kollie’s defense attorney argued for the possibility his client could one day walk out from behind bars.

“Mr. Kollie is a very young man, he’s only 23 years old and he does have the capacity for change,” Eric Baumann said.

In Kollie’s statement to the court, he apologized to Jupiter’s family but maintained his innocence, as he claims he still doesn’t know what happened that night.