Jeni
09-26-2002, 07:48 PM
Wondering what you all think of this?
A murder case, after all
Trial ordered for mom who left 2 kids to die in hot car
September 26, 2002
BY JOHN MASSON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
A Detroit mother whose two young children smothered in a sweltering car while she had a beauty treatment will face a murder trial -- rather than reduced manslaughter charges -- in a case that set off international cries of outrage.
Tarajee Maynor -- in an orange Oakland County Jail uniform -- sat stoically Wednesday, shackled in the jury box as prosecution and defense lawyers argued to Circuit Judge Wendy Potts. Maynor didn't flinch when Potts ordered her to stand trial on felony murder charges with the potential for life behind bars.
Prosecutors cheered the decision, saying it will let a jury weigh Maynor's actions. But her lawyer, Elbert Hatchett, said the decision was a blow.
"This will be a formidable trial challenge," he said. "It's going to be very, very tough."
Charges against Maynor, 25, had been reduced to involuntary manslaughter, a 15-year felony, by Judge Stephen Cooper of 46th District Court in Southfield at a July 10 hearing.
And Maynor, who is pregnant, tried to plead guilty to those reduced charges. But prosecutors appealed Cooper's ruling to Potts.
The case that has drawn international attention began June 28, when Maynor locked 3-year-old Adonnis and 10-month-old Acacia in the car and went into a Southfield salon.
When she came out three hours later -- after having her hair done, getting a massage, trying on a sundress and treating herself to a cold pop and a snack -- the children were dead.
Smudges from Adonnis' fingers and lips covered the window around a one-inch gap in window that was the only source of fresh air into the car. He had also taken his sister out of her car seat.
Before taking the children to the hospital, Maynor drove around for hours concocting a story in which she claimed she had been kidnapped and raped, officials said. Under police questioning, Maynor, a student at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, admitted leaving the children and called herself stupid.
She was charged with two counts of felony murder -- which carries a mandatory penalty of life in prison upon conviction -- and two counts of first-degree child abuse.
Hatchett said Maynor is responsible for the deaths, but she is not a murderer. "This lady committed a crime that took the life of her children," he said. "Now, that's a very candid statement by a defense lawyer."
But he argued that the crime was involuntary manslaughter. To charge Maynor with felony murder, he said, prosecutors also must prove that the deaths happened in the course of a felony -- in this case, first-degree child abuse.
That offense, he argued, requires proof that Maynor specifically intended to cause serious injury or death.
Oakland County Assistant Prosecutor Anica Letica disagreed. She said it was enough to show that Maynor committed the act that led to the deaths -- that she left the children in a black car in a blacktop parking lot for more than three hours on a day when temperatures reached 86 degrees.
"This is what her plan was. This is what she was going to do with the kids while she was at the salon," Letica said. "That car was an oven. . . . They were going to die. It wasn't a mere possibility . . . they were going to die."
Potts agreed with the argument and reinstated the murder charges.
"That's all we wanted," Letica said. "We just want a jury to hear all these facts, and let them determine."
Maynor remains in the Oakland County Jail without bond.
Hatchett said he is exploring appealing Potts' decision.
"It is indeed a blow," he said of Potts' ruling. "I can't tell you how disappointed we are."
A murder case, after all
Trial ordered for mom who left 2 kids to die in hot car
September 26, 2002
BY JOHN MASSON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
A Detroit mother whose two young children smothered in a sweltering car while she had a beauty treatment will face a murder trial -- rather than reduced manslaughter charges -- in a case that set off international cries of outrage.
Tarajee Maynor -- in an orange Oakland County Jail uniform -- sat stoically Wednesday, shackled in the jury box as prosecution and defense lawyers argued to Circuit Judge Wendy Potts. Maynor didn't flinch when Potts ordered her to stand trial on felony murder charges with the potential for life behind bars.
Prosecutors cheered the decision, saying it will let a jury weigh Maynor's actions. But her lawyer, Elbert Hatchett, said the decision was a blow.
"This will be a formidable trial challenge," he said. "It's going to be very, very tough."
Charges against Maynor, 25, had been reduced to involuntary manslaughter, a 15-year felony, by Judge Stephen Cooper of 46th District Court in Southfield at a July 10 hearing.
And Maynor, who is pregnant, tried to plead guilty to those reduced charges. But prosecutors appealed Cooper's ruling to Potts.
The case that has drawn international attention began June 28, when Maynor locked 3-year-old Adonnis and 10-month-old Acacia in the car and went into a Southfield salon.
When she came out three hours later -- after having her hair done, getting a massage, trying on a sundress and treating herself to a cold pop and a snack -- the children were dead.
Smudges from Adonnis' fingers and lips covered the window around a one-inch gap in window that was the only source of fresh air into the car. He had also taken his sister out of her car seat.
Before taking the children to the hospital, Maynor drove around for hours concocting a story in which she claimed she had been kidnapped and raped, officials said. Under police questioning, Maynor, a student at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, admitted leaving the children and called herself stupid.
She was charged with two counts of felony murder -- which carries a mandatory penalty of life in prison upon conviction -- and two counts of first-degree child abuse.
Hatchett said Maynor is responsible for the deaths, but she is not a murderer. "This lady committed a crime that took the life of her children," he said. "Now, that's a very candid statement by a defense lawyer."
But he argued that the crime was involuntary manslaughter. To charge Maynor with felony murder, he said, prosecutors also must prove that the deaths happened in the course of a felony -- in this case, first-degree child abuse.
That offense, he argued, requires proof that Maynor specifically intended to cause serious injury or death.
Oakland County Assistant Prosecutor Anica Letica disagreed. She said it was enough to show that Maynor committed the act that led to the deaths -- that she left the children in a black car in a blacktop parking lot for more than three hours on a day when temperatures reached 86 degrees.
"This is what her plan was. This is what she was going to do with the kids while she was at the salon," Letica said. "That car was an oven. . . . They were going to die. It wasn't a mere possibility . . . they were going to die."
Potts agreed with the argument and reinstated the murder charges.
"That's all we wanted," Letica said. "We just want a jury to hear all these facts, and let them determine."
Maynor remains in the Oakland County Jail without bond.
Hatchett said he is exploring appealing Potts' decision.
"It is indeed a blow," he said of Potts' ruling. "I can't tell you how disappointed we are."