Is now campaigning to have his sentence reduced so they can be together

Katie, mother-of-one, says she split up with her boyfriend for Bradford

The pair have exchanged dozens of letters since January

A British mother has revealed she dumped her boyfriend for her pen pal prisoner who is on death row in America.

Katie Menham, 25, from Malmesbury, Wiltshire, has exchanged 'dozens' of letters with convicted killer Julius Bradford, 31, since January – and is now fighting to get him a retrial so they can be together.

Bradford has been on death row in High Desert State Prison, Nevada, since 2004 - after he was found guilty of first-degree murder and attempted robbery.

The mother, who has son Alfie from a previous relationship, tells how she decided to write to a death row inmate after watching an American prison documentary in January

Katie Menham, 25, from Malmesbury, Wiltshire, pictured with her four-year-old son Alfie, has been writing to killer Julius Bradford, 31, since January

In court it emerged he and two accomplices had ambushed a 48-year-old father of seven, attacking him and attempting to rob him before shooting him dead.

Despite Bradford's violent past, Katie who has a four-year-old son, Alfie, says she has developed 'a connection' with him.

So much so that, last month, she split with her boyfriend of two years to focus on her blossoming relationship with the inmate - who is locked up 5,000 miles away.

Katie, a counselling and psychotherapy student, said: 'I never thought you could have such a strong bond with someone you have never met but this is really special. I can't explain it but it's so powerful.'

'I don't expect everyone to understand it and I'm not condoning Julius' crimes, but I take people as I find them - and what I see is an intelligent, thoughtful person who got into the wrong crowd as a teen.

Bradford has been on death row in High Desert State Prison, Nevada, since 2004 - after he was found guilty of first-degree murder and attempted robbery

Katie has exchanged 'dozens' of letters with the convicted killer and is now fighting to get him a retrial

'In the end my boyfriend couldn't hack the time I was spending writing to Julius, so we split.'

Now, new evidence has emerged in Bradford's case and he has submitted an application for appeal, meaning he could face a retrial next year.

Katie adds: 'Now, I'm fundraising to get him a decent lawyer as I truly believe mistakes were made in his trial and hope the new evidence brings that to light.

'I will do everything in my power to get him his freedom so we can focus on our future together.'

The mother, who has son Alfie from a previous relationship, tells how she decided to write to a death row inmate after watching an American prison documentary in January.

She admits her then-boyfriend of 20 months – with whom she'd discussed marriage and children in the future – 'didn't understand' why she'd want a prisoner for a pen pal.

She explains: 'He told me it would be dangerous to make contact with a killer, and said he didn't want me to get involved with someone like that.

Katie has now launched a campaign to get Bradford a retrial so they can be together

'I'm quite an open-minded and accepting person while my boyfriend was a bit more suspicious, so I just put it down to our differences.

'But my parents understood what I was trying to do. They said it was typical of me - trying to help someone in a rubbish situation.'

Katie joined free site WriteAPrisoner.com that month, and found Julius Bradford's profile.

She learned that, in July 2003, Bradford and two pals devised a plan to lure 48-year-old Benito Zambrano-Lopez to them so they could rob him.

The gang then shot the father once in the head.

Bradford also was convicted of another robbery-murder in a separate trial, and was a suspect in several others that were believed to be gang-related.

In 2004, he was convicted of first-degree murder and attempted robbery, and sentenced to death at Supreme County Court, Nevada.

He was re-trialled in 2007 when new evidence emerged, but was once again found guilty and remained an inmate on death row at High Desert Street prison, Nevada.

Speaking of her response to Bradford's convictions, Katie recalls: 'I wasn't shocked as I knew that whichever death row inmate I wrote to would have committed a serious crime.

Despite Bradford's violent past, Katie who has a four-year-old son, Alfie, says she has developed 'a connection' with him

In March, Bradford even sent Katie a Mother's Day card with the message: 'Woman like you definitely deserve a day just for you =)'

'But I read how Julius hadn't been the one to actually pull the trigger, which to me made all the difference. He'd gotten involved with gangs at an early age and I suspected he hadn't had much home support and had fallen in with the wrong crowd.

'Looking at his photo, I saw pain in his eyes and I wanted to help.'

Katie tells how she submitted the address of the home she shared with Alfie, her son from a previous relationship.

She recalls: 'My boyfriend was unimpressed I'd chosen a male inmate, as he'd assumed I'd be writing to another woman.

'I reassured him that Julius's gender and the fact he's clearly handsome was irrelevant. I felt drawn to his case, not because I found him attractive.

'I asked my boyfriend to be supportive, but he was horrified by Julius crime and refused to give me his blessing.'

I would never leave my boyfriend and risk criticism from friends and family if I wasn't sure that Julius was worth it. You can't help who you fall for

Katie sent her first four-page letter to Bradford that month.

And three weeks later, a reply landed on her doormat.

She recalls: 'It arrived covered in stamps from the prison, and I was so nervous I just stared at it for about two hours.

'When I finally opened it I saw loads of smiley faces on the page and I burst into tears.'

In the letter, Bradford asked Katie why she had chosen to write to him, explaining he thought he'd removed his profile from the site.

He also urged her to confide in him, writing: 'it's got to be two ways,' and added that's 'how friendship works'.

Bradford added: 'really enjoyed your letter [...] you couldve carried on for another 4 - 40 pages and I would not have raised a complaint =)'

Katie says: 'I was overwhelmed by his articulate and thoughtful response, and felt flattered he felt able to confide in me.

'Once I started writing my reply the following day, I found myself telling him things that I'd normally never tell a stranger, like how I'd suffered in the past with issues such as self-harm and depression.

She said that she played down to her boyfriend how many letters she was receiving, hiding them under my bed

'I'd told my boyfriend about these issues in the past, but somehow, writing about it to Julius felt really cathartic – I felt sure he would understand me.'

By March, the pair were exchanging notes thick and fast, sending multiple letters in a row in their haste to make contact.

Katie adds: 'He's obviously an attractive guy, but our connection went deeper than that.

'There was nothing flirty or sleazy about our messages, they were more emotional than anything.'

By mid-March, Katie admits she was living in fear of Bradford being given an execution date.

She adds: 'By then it felt like I'd known him for years, and the thought of losing him was terrifying.

'It was easy to forget he was a convicted criminal when we were writing – then suddenly I'd remember he was on death row and panic he'd be taken from me.

'Some nights I lay awake and thought about him alone in that cell and it broke my heart.

'Julius didn't go into too much detail about the murder and I never pushed him to, but he did speak honestly about his troubled life as a teen.'

In one letter he wrote: 'It was a time when I lashed out at people becuz I felt whatever they were going through couldnt begin to compare with what I dealt with daily.

'I feel sympathy and more empathy for others [...] they may not have learned to cope with whatever it is they're going through and I have. And you seem to be the same way =)'

In March, Bradford even sent Katie a Mother's Day card with the message: 'Woman like you definitely deserve a day just for you =)'

That month Bradford offered to pay a $25 (£17.30) fee to speed up the prison's vetting process, meaning the pair would receive their letters quicker.

Katie says: 'By then I was sending him stuff whenever I thought of him, whether that was silly notes or long rambling letters.

'I didn't tell my son about my pen pal – he's only four and I didn't see a reason for him to know.

In one letter, Bradford wrote: 'It was a time when I lashed out at people becuz I felt whatever they were going through couldnt begin to compare with what I dealt with daily'

'And I played down to my boyfriend how many letters I was receiving, hiding them under my bed.

'Obviously Julius is an attractive man and I knew my boyfriend would hit the roof and accuse me of cheating if he realised how much we were confiding in one another.'

By April, Katie says she was fascinated with Bradford's case and admits that the more time she spent researching it, the more compelled she felt to help him.

But she tells how, as the relationship with her pen-pal deepened, her relationship with her boyfriend was disintegrating.

She says: 'I was a full-time mum and studying for my degree online. Every other moment I had was spent writing to Julius, searching for updates on his case and just thinking about him.

Despite his violent past, if I had the same chemistry with Julius in the flesh as we have over pen and paper, I would have no problem with him meeting my son, Alfie

'My boyfriend and I started having arguments about it because I never had time for him anymore.

'I think he was jealous I was writing to another man and giving him so much of my time and attention.

'In the middle of April, things came to a head and he asked me to stop talking to Julius.

'I finally realised that my feelings for from him were more than just friendship.

'When push came to shove, I couldn't give Julius up - so we mutually agreed to end it.

'Our relationship had never been perfect, so I wouldn't say Julius was the sole reason we split – but it definitely played a part.

'I would never leave my boyfriend and risk criticism from friends and family if I wasn't sure that Julius was worth it. You can't help who you fall for.'

Later that month, Bradford's public attorney submitted an appeal for a retrial, on the basis of new evidence emerging – and if this is approved he could face release as early as next year.

Newly single and with the possibility of a retrial for Bradford, Katie tells how she has finally let herself imagine a future with him.

She says: 'If our connection is as strong in person as it is long distance, we have found something very rare, and I could see myself falling in love with him.

'Despite his violent past, if I had the same chemistry with Julius in the flesh as we have over pen and paper, I would have no problem with him meeting my son, Alfie.

'I'd hold Julius to the same standards as I would anyone else, so if I trusted him, of course I'd let him be around Alfie.

'Nothing would make me happier than for him to win his appeal so we can meet face to face and let our relationship grow into love and marriage - but who knows what will happen?'

This month, Katie started a Facebook page, 'Free Julius Bradford', which already has 1,300 members.

Katie says she can see herself falling in love with Bradford if the connection they have is as strong in person as it is over long distance

She has also started a petition via change.org, called: 'Get Julius Bradford off death row before it's too late', which has 27 signatures.

She adds: 'To give him every chance of succeeding, I am planning to fundraise to get him the best legal representation possible.

'I know there's a possibility of his life being taken before we ever get to meet properly, and that thought is unbearable. But I can't afford to go over and see him just yet because all the money I raise has to go towards getting him the best legal team I can get.'

'I haven't told Julius what I'm doing, because I don't want to get his hopes up. But his sister knows, and she is fundraising over in the US, too.'

However, she admits that the responses to her Facebook page have been mixed.

Katie explains: 'My mum has been supportive throughout because she trusts that I know what I'm doing and knows that nothing she says will make me stop writing to Julius.

'My dad was harder to convince - he worries that I'm too attached to Julius and that it would destroy me if he was executed, but he's coming round to the idea.

'One of my close friends has been very negative about it and wrote rude comments on the page about how I was naive and had no idea what I was getting into.

'I deleted the comments and totally cut him off - I don't need the negativity.

'If friends don't agree with what I'm doing that's fine, I know what I'm doing is controversial and can't expect everyone to get on board - but as my friends they should at least try to understand.

'It's frustrating because I know he's a good man - and sometimes I feel like I'm the only one who can see that.

'I'm not denying what Julius did was wrong, but let's not forget he's already served 13 years in prison.

'I believe he deserves a second chance – and maybe then we can have a happy future together as well.