Scared Monkeys Discussion Forum

I pray for justice for this sweet angel and prayers also go to her loving aunt. ::MonkeyAngel::

 ::MonkeyAngel:: ::MonkeyAngel::

yeppers.... ::MonkeyAngel::

 ::MonkeyAngel::

me too

Yes 4Donks, the video of this little child will forever be burned in my memory.  She is free from all fear and pain now.

http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/10706936/

Mother, friend plead not guilty in Fayetteville girl's death

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2012/04/04/1168624?sac=fo.home
Cumberland Assistant DA Cal Colyer looking forward to retirement after 28 years as prosecutor
By Paul Woolverton, Staff Writer
April 4, 2012


Three days before his retirement last week, Assistant District Attorney Calvin Colyer looked with regret at a bookcase full of overstuffed notebooks in his otherwise nearly emptied office on the fourth floor of the Cumberland County Courthouse.

The paperwork documented 17 pending murder cases involving 19 victims.

The homicides include the murder of soldier and Army wife Christina Smith in 2008 and the rape and murder of 5-year-old Shaniya Davis in 2009, two cases that brought Fayetteville national headlines.

 ::snipping2::

http://www.policymic.com/articles/8928/child-sex-trafficking-jumps-drastically-in-america-and-across-the-world
Child Sex Trafficking Jumps Drastically in America and Across the World
May 29, 2012

 ::snipping2::
In 2009, 5-year-old Shaniya Davis was sold as a prostitute by her mother, Antoinette Davis, to a man named Mario Andrette McNeil to cover a drug debt. For the first year of her life, Shaniya lived with her mother. After that, Antoinette felt that Shaniya’s father, Bradley Lockhart, would be able to provide a more stable environment so she sent her to live with him. There were no formal custody arrangements and Shaniya still saw her mother and spent weekends with her. Carey Lockhart-Davis, Bradley’s sister, was like a second mother to Shaniya stating during the Oprah Winfrey interview that, “When he’s [Bradley], Shaniya’s with me.”
On October 2, 2009, Bradley said goodbye to his daughter and left for an out of town contracting job. On October 9, Antoinette called Carey asking for Shaniya to come over. Shaniya loved her mother and loved being with her. As she’d done many times, Carey dropped Shaniya off at her mother’s home. That was the last time Carey saw her alive. On November 13, McNeil turned himself in and police charged him with first degree kidnapping. The next day, police found out about Shaniya being sold to cover her mother’s drug debt. Antoinette was arrested and charged with human trafficking and felony child abuse involving prostitution. Within a few days, Shaniya’s body was found raped and beaten on the side of a North Carolina highway next to deer carcasses. Her cause of death was asphyxiation. Bradley said that he was never aware of any drug problem and the thought of a drug problem never even entered his mind.

Every year, at least 100,000 U.S. children are made prostitute against their will. As I look at my daughter and other children, I can’t help but think how anyone could possibly be attracted to a child. These people don’t just need help, they need Jesus because doing harm to any child is straight evil and I mean that.

When will her mother go to trial?  This has went on too long.  She needs her punishment, NOW! ::MonkeyMad::

This is one I could gladly throw the switch for.

I too return to his site often.  I think this case should have been kept in the headlines until the very end.   I wish a banner with the photo of this child being carried to her abuse and death should be kept in everyone's face until justice is served.

I'll never, ever forget the photo of little Shaniya and her rapist/murderer at the hotel in front of the elevator.   ::MonkeyNoNo::

Me too"...haunts me

http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/11417157/
Trial for Shaniya Davis' accused killer to begin in February
August 10, 2012

Fayetteville, N.C. — The man accused of buying, raping and killing a 5-year-old Fayetteville girl in November of 2009 will go on trial in February, officials with the Cumberland County district attorney's office said Friday.

Mario Andrette McNeill, 32, has been charged with murder, kidnapping and rape in the death of Shaniya Davis, whose body was found in a kudzu patch near the Lee-Harnett county line on Nov. 16, 2009, six days after her mother, Antoinette Nicole Davis, reported her missing from her Fayetteville home.

McNeill and Davis will both go on trial in February.

Authorities say Davis was complicit in her daughter's death. Arrest warrants stated that she "did knowingly provide Shaniya with the intent that she be held in sexual servitude" and "did permit an act of prostitution with Shaniya."
 ::snipping2::
Prosecutors have said they plan to seek the death penalty against McNeill but not Antoinette Davis.

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2012/08/10/1196387?sac=fo.local
Trial date set for 5-year-old Shaniya Davis' accused killer
August 11, 2012

 ::snipping2::
Mario Andrette McNeill will go on trial more than three years after Shaniya's death. The girl's mother also faces charges; her trial is scheduled for Feb. 18, too, but only one of the cases will go forward then, said Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West.

It hasn't been determined which trial will start first nor whether they will be conducted back-to-back.
 ::snipping2::
McNeill, 32, faces multiple charges including murder, child rape, kidnapping, child abuse and human trafficking. He is being held without bail in the Cumberland County jail.

If convicted, he could be sentenced to death.

His trial likely will take two to three months, including jury selection, West said.

Davis, 28, is charged with murder, child abuse, sexual servitude, human trafficking, child rape and other charges. She is in jail with bail set at $3.5 million. Her trial likely will run about a month, West said.

She faces life in prison without parole if convicted.
 ::snipping2::
One of McNeill's lawyers has another capital case late this year, West said. If that trial runs longer than expected, the Shaniya Davis case will be delayed until March 11.

Investigators think Antoniette Davis sold her daughter to McNeill on Nov. 10, 2009, to settle a drug debt. She then reported the girl was missing. McNeill is accused of taking the girl to a hotel in Sanford and then killing her and dumping her body after someone told him the police were looking for him.

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2012/08/15/1197089
Editorial: Justice - Shaniya's case shows flaws in legal system
August 15, 2012

Reminder...

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2011/10/05/1127873

Published: 07:25 AM, Thu Oct 06, 2011

State to seek death penalty in Shaniya Davis murder case

A judge has cleared the way for prosecutors to seek the death penalty against the man accused of killing 5-year-old Shaniya Davis in 2009.

Prosecutors, however, told Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons in a hearing Wednesday that they do not intend to seek the death penalty for her mother, Antoinette Davis, 27, who is accused of giving up her daughter to pay off a drug debt.

Mario Andrette McNeill, 31, and Davis are both charged with first-degree murder in Shaniya's death.

Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty against McNeill because of two aggravating factors - that he is accused of killing Shaniya during the commission of a rape and kidnapping and that the crime was "especially heinous, atrocious and cruel," District Attorney Billy West said.

West said in court that Antoinette Davis owed McNeill a $200 drug debt and that she was unwilling to have sex with him to pay it off. Instead, she offered her 5-year-old daughter to settle the debt, he said.

"This is a case of a rape and/or sex offense against a 5-year-old victim who was helpless to prevent her asphyxiation," West said. "Her body was left in a ditch after she was asphyxiated and this was done, allegedly, by someone she knew and perhaps even trusted."

McNeill's lawyers did not contest the prosecutors' bid to proceed with the case as a capital trial, saying only they do not agree with the prosecution's position.

"We would like the record to show we don't agree or concur with the DA's aggravating factors," defense lawyer Harold "Butch" Pope told the judge.

Ammons granted the prosecution's request to seek the death penalty.

Prosecutors then told the judge they do not intend to seek the death penalty against Antoinette Davis.

West said that after consulting with the state Attorney General's Office, prosecutors determined that a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 1982, Enmund v. Florida, would preclude the death penalty because Davis did not intend for her daughter to die.

That case established that the Constitution's Eighth Amendment prohibits death sentences for defendants in felony murder cases who did not themselves kill, try to kill or intend to kill anyone.

 ::snipping2::

Thank you for the updates, texasmom.
 ::justice2NJ::

still haunts me.

since mom offered up her little girl for sex, why did this creep have to murder her? he could have taken her back home afterwards because the mom would not have ratted him out since she told him to rape Shaniya. cold blooded ....I hate them both for what they did

This image is ingrained in my memory too and I think of it and it makes my heart ache for that beautiful baby.  Where is the justice??

bananas, I like you and the others still see this image.  Sometimes justice is so slow.

Everytime I google this case or check this thread I get so darned sad.  Justice may be slow but this is at a stand still.   I know, all of these cases are horrendous,  all of these children deserve justice.   I think the hardest part for me, is that mother was allowed to remain free yet no one even shunned her.   People just accepted her back.   I would think they would want to beat her to within an inch of her life.

I am with you Terri?  I am completely shocked by everything and everyone in this case?  How is this allowed?  How did this happned?  Where is her Aunt & Father?  They seemed to be so vocal, initially, why aren't they screaming from the roof tops and demanding justice? ::MonkeyShocked::

http://www.wsoctv.com/news/news/local/authorities-mother-gave-5-year-old-man-drug-paymen/nTtWn/

Authorities: Mother gave 5-year-old to man as drug payment

The man charged with kidnapping, raping and killing a 5-year-old girl will face the death penalty if he is convicted.

Mario McNeill goes to trial next month in Fayetteville, but he faced a judge for a pre-trial hearing Friday.

Mom should face the death penalty also.

Just so ya'll know, I live very near Fayetteville and my sister and other relatives do live in Fayetteville. I was raised there. My sister and I and my best friend are thinking of going to this trial and to nasty mother's trial too. I will post what I see and hear if I do get to go. Let me know if anyone else is near by and would like to meet up at courthouse. Thanks..Jamms

The death penalty is too good for these POS!
 ::crymonkey2::

Totally agree.

I also am haunted by the image of Shaniya and that beast carrying her. I was so hopeful when I first saw the video that he was carrying her to safety. But no, he was carrying her to her death. He could have let her live. Shaniya would have probably never told on him for fear of what might happen to her from her egg donor. I am still pissed at her father for allowing this child to be unsupervised with the egg donor who he knew was a POS...he has to live with himself....

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/02/07/1235662?sac=fo.local
Shaniya Davis trials postponed; Defense sought more time to review evidence
February 7, 2013

The trial for the man accused of raping and killing 5-year-old Shaniya Davis has been postponed until April 8. The trial for the girl's mother also was delayed.

Mario Andrette McNeil, 32, was scheduled to be tried Feb. 18 in Cumberland County Superior Court. If convicted, he could be sentenced to death.

The girl's mother, Antoniette Nicole Davis, 28, was expected to stand trial at the conclusion of McNeil's case. She is charged with murder, child abuse, sexual servitude, human trafficking, child rape and other charges. Davis is accused of giving Shaniya to McNeil in November 2009 to settle a drug debt.

Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons on Wednesday granted the defendants' request for a continuance in both cases.

District Attorney Billy West said he still plans to try McNeil's case first.
 ::snipping2::
Ammons on Jan. 11 denied a request by McNeil's lawyers to delay the trial by 60 days.

But in a motion and order for continuance filed Jan. 31, the lawyers said "counsel for defendant would not be prepared to render effective representation if the trial proceeds on Feb. 18."

"This motion is not made for the purpose of delay," they said in the paperwork, "but is necessary to enable the defendant to complete the review (of) all of the discovery, examine and evaluate the numerous items of evidence, and to retain experts to assist the defense."

The motion said additional time would be required to review 13 items still at the State Bureau of Investigation for examination. McNeil's lawyers said they must "determine whether or not defense needs to retain their own experts regarding any SBI reports."
More...

http://www.wral.com/trial-in-fayetteville-girl-s-kidnapping-death-postponed/12079324/
Trial in Fayetteville girl's kidnapping, death postponed
February 7, 2013

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — The trial of a man accused of buying, raping and killing a 5-year-old Fayetteville girl in November 2009 has been delayed until April.

Mario Andrette McNeill, 32, has been charged with murder, kidnapping and rape in the death of Shaniya Davis, whose body was found in a kudzu patch near the Lee-Harnett county line on Nov. 16, 2009, six days after her mother, Antoinette Nicole Davis, reported her missing from her Fayetteville home.

Jury selection in his capital trial was supposed to begin Feb. 18, but it has been rescheduled for April 8 after defense attorneys were granted more time to review evidence.

Defense attorneys Butch Pope and Terry Alford said 13 items are still at the State Bureau of Investigation, and they need to determine whether they should hire their own expert to examine them.

The defense also is trying to hire a geologist to review the state's analysis of soil samples from the kudzu patch.

Also, Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West told the defense that the results of DNA tests conducted out of state on seven hairs wouldn't be back until next week – a week before the trial was to begin.
More...

Video at Link

Justice seems so slow . . . but I would rather see it slow and sure . . .
 ::justice2NJ::

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=8991229
More charges in Shaniya Davis case
February 13, 2013

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) -- Prosecutors have charged Mario McNeill with new charges in the death of 5-year-old Shaniya Davis. McNeill appeared in a Fayetteville courtroom early Wednesday and entered not guilty pleas to charges of second-degree exploitation of a minor and third-degree exploitation of a minor. He already faces charges of first-degree murder, first-degree rape of a child, child abuse, human trafficking and sexual servitude.

McNeill is set to go on trial in April in Cumberland County Superior Court.
 ::snipping2::
 The trial for the girl's mother, Antoniette Nicole Davis, is likely to come after McNeill's trial.

http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130214/APN/1302140809
Trials postponed in death of Fayetteville girl
February 14, 2013

A judge has agreed to postpone the trials for a man charged with raping and killing a 5-year-old Fayetteville girl and the child's mother, who is charged with giving up the child to pay a drug debt.

Both trials are now scheduled to begin April 8, although District Attorney Billy West said he plans to try Mario Andrette McNeil first.
More...

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/02/20/1238618?sac=fo.local
Shaniya Davis' accused killer Mario Andrette McNeill claims innocence in letters
February 21, 2013

Mario Andrette McNeill denies raping and killing 5-year-old Shaniya Davis in handwritten letters sent to The Fayetteville *******.

McNeill, 32, is scheduled to stand trial April 8 in Cumberland County Superior Court. He faces the death penalty if convicted of the November 2009 killing.

He claims innocence in two letters postmarked Feb. 15 and addressed from the Cumberland County Detention Center. The ******* received the letters Wednesday.
More...

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=9001067
Suspect denies killing 5-year-old Shaniya Davis
February 21, 2013

 ::snipping2::
The Fayetteville ******* reported it has received letters from Mario Andrette McNeill in which he denies the allegations involving Shaniya Davis.
 ::snipping2::
The newspaper said McNeill said he did not abduct the child, did not buy the child, did not assault the child and did not kill the child.

Authorities accuse Shaniya's mother of selling her to settle a drug debt.

Police say McNeill assaulted the child in a Sanford hotel before killing her and leaving her body in Harnett County.
More...

Muffy  ::bee::
He can deny till the cows come home, but that won't change a thing.  April can't come soon enought!

I will never forget the image of Shaniya in the clutches of McNeill in front of the hotel elevator.   ::MonkeyNoNo::  There needs to be justice for this little angel. 

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/04/02/1247744?sac=fo.local
Judge denies second continuance for Mario Andrette McNeill in Shaniya Davis murder trial
April 3, 2013

Lawyers for the man accused of raping and killing 5-year-old Shaniya Davis were denied a second continuance in the case Tuesday in Cumberland County Superior Court.

Mario Andrette McNeill's lawyers said they needed more time to consult with their experts.

Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons, who is scheduled to try the case, turned down the request.

Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday in the capital murder trial.

McNeill, 32, was originally scheduled to go on trial Feb. 18, but Ammons postponed the date to April 8.

The trial for Shaniya's mother, Antoniette Nicole Davis, also has been delayed and should begin following McNeill's case.

McNeill has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges, including first-degree murder, child rape, kidnapping, child abuse and human trafficking. If convicted, he could face death.
More...

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=9051858
Court docs: Shaniya Davis' aunt dated alleged killer
April 3, 2013

 ::snipping2::
In 2009, 5-year-old Shaniya Davis was given up by her mother to settle a drug debt. The little girl was raped and murdered and dumped in the woods.

Mario McNeill, her accused murderer, goes on trial Monday. In an attempt to delay the trial, stacks of last-minute motions were filed this week.

Through court documents, ABC11 learned that McNeill may have known Shaniya's family long before her murder.

Defense attorneys have requested a physical examination of the child's now 23-year-old aunt, who admits to dating McNeill for three months, prior to Shaniya's murder.

The state claims pornographic images of a minor were found on McNeill's cell phone. McNeill says the photos are of Shaniya's aunt. He denies the woman was a child at the time the pictures were taken. Shaniya's aunt denies that the photos are of her. 

Because of the pornography, McNeill faces second and third-degree child sexual exploitation charges, on top of numerous others related to Shaniya's kidnapping, rape, and murder.

A ruling this week has McNeill facing the child sexual exploitation charges once the murder trial is over.

Another defense request blames faulty Fayetteville Police Department equipment for gaps in McNeill's recorded interrogation following the murder. The defense suggests police questioned McNeill without advising him of his rights. The software consultant and company writes, someone physically pressed stop on the recorder and the DVD system had a bug.

The defense wants all of McNeill's interrogation statements thrown out of the trial. The judge will rule on that on Monday.

Also among the thousands of pages of motions was a handwritten note from McNeill to the Cumberland County Clerk's office, received in January. It reads:

"TO WHOM THIS MAY CONCERN,

THE HARD WAY IS HOW YOU WANT IT.

TISK TASK"

Dozens of witnesses will be called during the trial, which is expected to last three months.  Witnesses range from family members to detectives, and even investigators in the Virgin Islands.

Jury selection begins Monday and is expected to last two to three weeks.
(Link in article with 27 images)

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/04/07/1234145?sac=fo.local
On eve of Shaniya Davis murder trial, her father wonders what could have been
April 7, 2013

The father of Shaniya Davis says he has forgiven her mother.

But Bradley Lockhart said he often finds himself reflecting on what might have been, four years after Shaniya was raped and killed in a case that has attracted national attention.

Shaniya would have turned 9 on Valentine's Day.

"We were extremely close," Lockhart said. "Shaniya spent the majority of time with me and her siblings. You miss those days. The first day she got on a bicycle. Her brother pushing her around with training wheels on it. You miss her scratching your car with a scooter. You miss birthdays. You wonder who she would be today.

"It's extremely hard when you see other kids in the neighborhood and watch them grow up. That's one of my frequent thoughts when I sit on my porch."

On Monday, the capital murder trial for Mario Andrette McNeill, the man accused of killing Shaniya, is scheduled to begin in Cumberland County Superior Court.
More...

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/04/11/1249788?sac=fo.local
2 more jurors seated in Shaniya Davis murder trial
April 12, 2013

Two more jurors were selected Thursday in the capital murder trial of Mario McNeill, and one previously selected was released, bringing the number of seated jurors to eight.

"All right. We're rolling backward now," said Cumberland County Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons, who is trying the case.

McNeill, 32, is accused of raping and killing 5-year-old Shaniya Davis in November 2009.

Thus far, the seated jury includes five women and three men.

Court resumes today at 9:30 a.m.

 ::snipping2::

On Thursday, 27 more prospective jurors were excused.

Twelve regular jurors must be seated along with three or four alternates before testimony begins.

One of the seven jurors who was seated Wednesday was excused Thursday after she told the judge that her job would not pay her while she served on jury duty. The case is expected to run six to eight weeks.

The jurors selected Wednesday are expected to be brought back to the courthouse today because of concerns about possible exposure to news media. Ammons made the decision Wednesday after a prospective juror said she had looked at headlines and accompanying photographs on the front of The Fayetteville ******* in a newspaper box near an entrance to the Cumberland County Courthouse.

She told the court there were other prospective jurors with her at the time.

Ammons referred to it as "the newspaper box incident" on Thursday, before reminding potential jurors that they must avoid news from the media.

"You can read the sports or comics. If you want to know what the weather is," he said, "just look out the window."

McNeill is facing seven charges, including first-degree murder and first-degree rape of a child. Authorities say Shaniya's mother handed over her child to McNeill to settle a drug debt, then falsely reported her child was missing. McNeill is accused of taking the girl to a Sanford hotel and assaulting her before dumping her body off N.C. 87 in Harnett County.

The mother, Antoniette Nicole Davis, 28, faces similar charges and is awaiting trial.

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/04/15/1250604?sac=fo.local
12 potenial jurors sent home in Shaniya Davis case Monday
April 16, 2013

Another juror was selected Monday in the Mario McNeill capital murder trial, bringing the number of seated jurors to 10.

Twelve jurors are needed, plus an additional three or four alternates, before testimony begins.

Jury selection resumes at 9:30 a.m. today in Cumberland County Superior Court.
 ::snipping2::
When the defense excused a white female potential juror Monday afternoon, Judge Jim Ammons expressed concern that the defense had shown a pattern of using peremptory challenges to block whites from serving on the jury.

It is illegal to dismiss a juror based on race.

The seated jury is split down the middle with five blacks and five whites.

Defense lawyer Terry Alford explained their reasoning behind the challenges, and Assistant District Attorney Robby Hicks told Ammons those reasons were sufficient.

"I want to make sure it's done properly," Ammons said.

On Monday, 19 potential jurors were excused.

One potential juror became emotional as the defense questioned her, remarking "that she (Shaniya) was so young." Another said he took medication that affects his concentration.

The trial, which began April 8 with jury selection, is expected to run about seven more weeks.
 ::snipping2::

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=9071963
Twist in Shaniya Davis murder case
April 19, 2013

 ::snipping2::
Mario McNeill could face the death penalty in the 2009 kidnapping, rape and murder of Shaniya Davis.

A jury is seated in the trial, but Friday morning, during a hearing, the public and press were asked to leave.

The move came after the state and defense began to disagree Thursday afternoon on whether to allow information into evidence pertaining to McNeill leading investigators to the child's body.

At a motions hearing Friday morning, Judge Jim Ammons unexpectedly cleared the courtroom.

"The matter has come to my attention that requires me, in the interest of justice, with no available means to me, to require this court to be closed to everyone except the parties that are involved," the judge explained.

Reporters were ordered out for about 15 minutes, let in for a couple of minutes, and then we learned the hearing has been continued until first thing Monday morning, which is when the court expected to begin opening statements.

Now the jury will not report until Monday afternoon. So far, there's been no clue as to what's behind the continuance.

McNeill faces first-degree murder, first-degree rape of a child, first-degree kidnapping, human trafficking with a child victim, sexual servitude with a child victim, sexual offense of a child and indecent liberties with a child charges related to Davis' death.

He could face the death penalty if convicted.

Authorities said the girl's body was dumped just off N.C. Highway 87 near the Lee-Harnett County line.

The trial is expected to be lengthy, with the state alone expected to argue two to three weeks. The state has 357 tagged exhibits.
Video at Link

http://www.wral.com/mental-claim-delays-fayetteville-death-penalty-trial/12365061/
Mental claim delays Fayetteville death penalty trial
Posted April 21, 2013, Updated April 22, 2013

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — The capital murder trial of Mario Andrette McNeill has been delayed for at least a week while McNeill undergoes a mental evaluation.

McNeill, 32, is charged with murder, rape and kidnapping in the death of 5-year-old Shaniya Davis.

Opening statements were set to begin Monday afternoon, but Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons told jurors not to come back until next Monday.

Defense attorneys raised a question Monday morning about McNeill's "capacity to proceed" and included an assessment of McNeill by Durham psychologist James Hilkey, who also evaluated Robert Stewart, who received a life sentence for killing eight people at a Carthage nursing home in 2009.

Ammons directed doctors from Cherry Hospital in Goldsboro and Central Regional Hospital in Butner, two state mental hospitals, to confer with Hilkey and conduct an independent evaluation of McNeill over the next few days.

The judge said he would hold a hearing Friday to determine whether the trial will proceed.
 ::snipping2::
Two weeks ago, McNeill rejected a deal offered by prosecutors to guarantee a life prison sentence if he pleaded guilty. His attorneys said he maintains his innocence.

Defense attorneys also challenged his statement to police, saying prosecutors promised his original attorney that they wouldn't seek the death penalty if McNeill helped them locate Shaniya's body. Prosecutors have denied any such agreement.

That motion was supposed to be handled last Friday, but Ammons closed the courtroom briefly to address what a court administrator described as a legal issue about attorney-client privilege.

Media organizations, including Capitol Broadcasting Co., the parent company of WRAL News, filed a motion challenging the decision to close the courtroom, saying he never made a specific finding "of any compelling interest in closing the courtroom" to meet standards imposed by the U.S. Supreme Court for shutting out the public.

Ammons defended the move Monday, saying he did it as a last resort.

"To avoid public disclosure of sensitive information that might prevent the parties from having a fair trial, I did find that there was no less restrictive means in protecting this interest, and the scope of the closure was held to 15 minutes," he said.

He could address that issue on Friday – the media want a transcript of the closed hearing – as well as the defense request to suppress McNeill's statement to police.

Investigators say Davis sold her daughter to McNeill to pay off a drug debt.

She is charged with first-degree murder, indecent liberties with a child, felony child abuse, felony sexual servitude, rape of a child, sexual offense of a child by an adult offender, human trafficking and making a false police report.

Her trial will be held after McNeill's case is over, and prosecutors aren't seeking the death penalty against her.

Video at Link

http://www.wral.com/news/local/video/12367575/#/vid12367575
Judge orders psychiatric exam of accused child killer

The capital murder trial of Mario Andrette McNeill has been delayed for at least a week while McNeill undergoes a mental evaluation.

Monday - 4:48pm (April 21, 2013)

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/04/24/1252366?sac=fo.local
Shaniya Davis case: Evaluation of McNeill's competency just before trial called an unusal move
April 24, 2013

A decision this week to stop the murder trial of Mario McNeill so he could be evaluated by medical professionals was unusual because of its timing, some legal experts say.

Questions about a defendant's competency to proceed are usually raised before a trial begins, said retired Cumberland County Superior Court Judge E. Lynn Johnson.

Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons delayed proceedings in McNeill's capital murder trial on Monday. A jury has been picked, and opening statements were expected that afternoon.

McNeill, 32, is accused of raping and killing 5-year-old Shaniya Davis in November 2009.

"You would have thought these issues would have come up at an earlier state. If it were observed by family members, the lawyer staff, jailers. There could be a host of things," Johnson said. "Was he on medication and has come off medication? Did incarceration lead to it?"

Carl Ivarsson, a longtime Fayetteville lawyer, agreed, calling it "fairly unusual" for questions about a defendant's competency to arise once a trial is under way.

"Usually, that issue is resolved much earlier. Competency doesn't come up often, but it's important," Ivarsson said. "The defendant has got to know the nature of the proceedings against him."

A motions hearing in the case has been recessed until 9:30 a.m. Friday at the earliest.

Ammons delayed the trial in response to a motion by defense lawyers during a hearing Monday. The motion regards "the capacity of the defendant to proceed" with the trial.

The motion has been sealed by the court, the court clerk said.

On Monday, Ammons referred to an evaluation of McNeill that had been conducted earlier, apparently at the request of McNeill's lawyers. Neither the judge nor the defense discussed what led to the evaluation.

Ammons told Ellen Hancox, the trial court administrator, that he has never dealt with this issue in Cumberland County but he has ruled on the capacity of a defendant to proceed in other counties. Ammons will not discuss the McNeill case with reporters while the trial is going on.

Members of the Shaniya Davis family could not be reached for comment.

Juanita Ball, McNeill's mother, has declined to speak to reporters.
State law says no one can be tried, convicted, sentenced or punished for a crime "by reason of mental illness or defect" when the defendant is unable to understand the nature of the proceedings against him, to comprehend his situation or to assist in his defense in a rational or reasonable manner. That condition is known as "incapacity to proceed."

Mental incapacity to proceed is different from an insanity defense.

Generally, Ivarsson said, it takes the opinion of a mental health professional, such as a psychologist or psychiatrist, to determine that a defendant lacks the competency to proceed.

In McNeill's case, Ammons mentioned doctors at Central Regional Hospital in Butner and Cherry Hospital in Goldsboro who may evaluate McNeill. Those are psychiatric facilities.

A representative of clinical services with Cherry Hospital said he could not discuss the process used to evaluate a patient for capacity to proceed in a court case.

Ivarsson said once a defendant is evaluated, a competency hearing is held to determine whether the defendant is able to go to trial.

"If the defendant is incapable of proceeding," he said, "then the court proceeding is delayed until he becomes capable to proceed."

Johnson, the retired judge, said the evaluation can take up to 60 days.

"Typically, it won't last that long," he said. "I would say it depends upon the severity of the illness involved or they understand he is feigning, which happens on occasion."

The defendant's lawyers, family members and psychiatric records are among the potential sources for information in an evaluation.

Johnson said psychiatric tests will likely be run and McNeill may be interviewed several times.

The prosecution also has the opportunity to have the defendant evaluated by a psychiatrist.
More...

It's just my opinion and I of course don't have all the information, but it seems to me this last minute evaluation of McNeill's competency is because there is so much evidence against him, it's all the defense can do at this point.   Of course, if McNeill has done something to himself that has caused him to be impaired, that could be something I suppose.  From what I've read and can understand, this isn't an insanity plea, but one of questioning McNeill's ability to understand nature of the proceedings against him.  The article above mentions the possibility of him coming off medication (if he was on any), or if his incarceration led to it.  Now the jury's been chosen, all ready to go and now this.  Interesting timing... ::MonkeyNoNo::

Praying justice for Shaniya will prevail.   ::MonkeyAngel::

I agree Muffy   ::bee::
I hope it is not just a delay tactic.
 ::justice2NJ::

http://fayobserver.com/articles/2013/04/26/1253042

Judge rules Mario McNeill competent to stand trial for murder of Shaniya Davis

Little Shaniya...think of you often little one...I hope you get the justice that you deserve. I wish you had been mine. I would have loved you and protected you always...

Thank you for the update Tina Bee.  I hope this will get things back on track for justice for Shaniya.   ::justice2NJ::

Updated: 4:47 p.m. yesterday
 
Analysts: Soil ties man to site where Shaniya Davis' body found

Fayetteville, N.C. — State analysts said Tuesday that soil found in a Fayetteville man's car likely came from a rural location where the body of a 5-year-old girl was found more than three years ago.

Mario Andrette McNeill, 32, is charged with murder, kidnapping and rape in the death of Shaniya Davis. He could face the death penalty if convicted of murder.
 ::snipping3::

Heather Hanna, a geologist with the North Carolina Geological Survey, testified that she compared a sample of soil that investigators collected from the gas pedal of McNeill's car with samples from the kudzu patch and found metallic fibers in both.

Roberto Garcia, a materials engineer at North Carolina State University, said the fibers appear to have come from a braided metal wire, such as a truck winch.

Hanna conducted electron micro-analysis of the soil samples at Fayetteville State University and determined that the mineral garnet also was present in all of them. Soil from McNeill's home and Shaniya's home didn't have the same composition as what was found in McNeill's car, she said.

"I would say it's highly unlikely they did not come from the same source," she said of the soil from the car and the kudzu patch.

Garcia echoed her comment.

Defense attorney Butch Pope questioned Hanna as to the extent of garnet in the region.

"I would not expect there to be garnet in the area of Fayetteville," she said, citing geological studies and maps.

Pope noted that soil on the floor mats of McNeill's car weren't tested and that the brake pedal was "squeaky clean."

"The floor mats would not have affected my interpretation of the gas pedal," Hanna responded.
 ::snipping3::  more
http://www.wral.com/analysts-soil-ties-man-to-site-where-shaniya-davis-body-found/12443897/

Hoping and praying for justice for Shaniya.   ::MonkeyAngel:: 

::justice2nj2::

I think of this beautiful child so often.    ::MonkeyAngel::

I so hope that she gets justice.  ::justice2nj2::

 ::MonkeyAngel::
 ::justice2nj2::

Me too.  ::bee::

Me three!
This case haunts me...

Me four . . . the video of him with her in his arms going into the elevator . . .

I don't think I will ever be able to get that image out of my head.   ::MonkeyNoNo::   And it needs to be shown at the trial.   ::MonkeyMad::

It haunts me too, I'll never forget it.   ::MonkeyTears:: ::MonkeyNoNo::

Justice for Shaniya!   ::justice2nj2::

 ::MonkeyCool::

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=9088021

McNeil doesn't deny taking Shaniya Davis
Thursday, May 02, 2013

FAYETTEVILLE (WTVD) -- Thursday, the jury deciding Mario McNeill's guilt or innocence watched surveillance video from a hotel where prosecutors say he took 5-year-old Shaniya Davis to rape her before killing her.

McNeil's defense does not dispute that he took the girl to the Comfort Suites hotel in Sanford on the night of November 10, 2009. But, McNeil claims he took her there at the request of family members and doesn't know what happened from there.

On the witness stand Thursday, hotel worker Jacqueline Lee told the jury she checked McNeill in around 6:11 a.m.

She said he told her he was with his daughter and wouldn't be at hotel for long because he was just stopping to rest on their way to Virginia to see the girl's mom. Said she saw the little girl wrapped in a blue blanket via the hotel's surveillance camera system and noticed her "kinky hair."

McNeill came down shortly after check-in to the breakfast bar where Lee said he got a banana, a muffin and some juice.

"He paused and stopped and looked at the [surveillance] cameras," Lee testified.

 ::snipping3::

On cross examination, McNeill's defense asked Lee if she remembered him saying he was there to "meet his people." She said she did not.

Also on the stand Thursday was hotel clerk Regina Bacani who testified when McNeill left the hotel he asked for his $100 security deposit back.

"He told me that he had to hit the road. He has to get is daughter to Virginia to meet the mother," said Bacani.

After he'd left, hotel housekeeping brought Baconi something from McNeill's room.

"It was a small, little clear open packet that had some white residue inside it," she said.

They turned it over to hotel management and it was eventually thrown in the trash, despite Baconi saying she thought it was cocaine.

Seth Chambers told jurors from the witness stand that he was a Comfort Suites guest the evening of November 9.

His room was on the same floor as McNeill. On the morning of the 10th, he woke up between 5:30 and 6:00 a.m. and went downstairs for breakfast before returning to his room for checkout paperwork. When he got off the elevator on the 2nd floor, he said he noticed McNeill carrying a child who he thought was a boy at the time as he could only see hair, head, and torso. He said McNeill nodded at him, and the child flipped hand to acknowledge him.

Chambers said the thing that caught his attention was the way McNeill was holding the child, over the shoulder.

 ::snipping3::

http://www.witn.com/home/headlines/McNeill-Wont-Testify-Defense-Rests-In-Shaniya-Davis-Murder-Case-207758601.html

(http://media.graytvinc.com/images/300*187/shaniya-davis-320.jpg)

Posted: Thu 3:38 PM, May 16, 2013A A   
Updated: Thu 7:35 PM, May 16, 2013Back to Home Page

McNeill Won't Testify; Defense Rests In Shaniya Davis Murder Case

Closing arguments will be presented next week in the trial of a Fayetteville man accused of raping and killing a 5-year-old girl more than three years ago.

Mario McNeill is charged with rape and murder in the death of 5-year-old Shaniya Davis in November 2009. After prosecutors finished presenting evidence Thursday morning, McNeill said he wouldn't testify.

His attorneys rested without presenting any evidence.

Closing arguments will be held Tuesday morning in a Cumberland County courtroom. The 32-year-old McNeill could face the death penalty if convicted.

 ::snipping3::

Short video clips from the trial

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZeSTj_zGVY&list=UUJsdJjY8VHf9nraq2Ijchgw

http://www.wral.com/prosecution-rests-in-fayetteville-death-penalty-trial/12452994/

Posted: 10:23 a.m. today
Updated: 6:50 p.m. today

Accused child killer presents no defense in death penalty trial

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — A Fayetteville man accused of raping and killing a 5-year-old girl more than three years ago has elected not to present any evidence in his death penalty trial.

Mario Andrette McNeill, 32, is charged with murder, kidnapping and rape in the death of Shaniya Davis. Her body was found on Nov. 16, 2009, in a kudzu patch off N.C. Highway 87 on the Lee-Harnett county line, six days after her mother reported her missing from their Fayetteville mobile home.

Closing arguments are scheduled for Tuesday morning. If the eight-man, four-woman jury finds him guilty, they would then hear evidence before deciding whether to sentence him to life in prison without parole or death.

Prosecutors called 44 witnesses over the past three weeks before resting their case Thursday morning.

Retired Fayetteville police Sgt. Chris Corcione was the final state witness, summing up the more than five hours of McNeill's videotaped interview with police that jurors watched Wednesday.

McNeill had surrendered to police after they identified him from a security video as having taken Shaniya to a Sanford hotel shortly after she disappeared. They grilled him for nearly six hours as they clung to the hope that she was still alive.

"Early on in the interview, it was clear Mr. McNeill was in denial mode," said Corcione, who led the questioning of McNeill.

"At one point in the interview, I thought it would be a good idea to plant a seed in his mind that someone told him to take the child," Corcione said. "I wanted him to grab onto that story and use that to legitimize the fact that he had the child."

McNeill repeatedly denied even knowing Shaniya for about the first two hours of the interview, but he later told police that the girl's aunt asked him to take her to the Sanford hotel and hand her off to relatives who would ensure that she went to school.

Investigators told McNeill that his story sounded implausible and that a log of text messages to and from his cellphone didn't back him up.

"You killed that baby, didn't you?" Corcione asked during the interview.

"No, no, no," McNeill insisted.

"No reasonable person would take a strange 5-year-old person from the front porch," Corcione said. "You killed that little girl because you had to get rid of her because she's evidence of the crime."

"No, no, no," McNeill said.

A couple of days later, McNeill's attorney provided information that led investigators to Shaniya's body. An autopsy determined that she had been suffocated and had injuries "consistent with a sexual assault."

 ::snipping3::

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=9101976

Mario McNeill defies lawyers over interrogation tapes
Tuesday, May 14, 2013


FAYETTEVILLE (WTVD) -- Tension is mounting inside the Fayetteville courtroom where Mario McNeill is on trial for the murder of five-year-old Shaniya Davis.

Those tensions led to a courtroom exchange between McNeill and a Cumberland County judge regarding police interrogation tapes.

McNeill butted heads Tuesday with his defense team choosing to speak for himself. He told the judge that he wants the jury to see and hear all of a six hour long video tape of McNeill being questioned by detectives.

"You understand there are things on that video tape that you are entitled to have them [the jury] not hear," asked Judge Ammons.

McNeill replied, "Yes."

McNeill is charged with the kidnap, rape and murder of Davis in Nov. 2009. He was interviewed three days after the little girl disappeared. During the interview, McNeill allegedly confesses to kidnapping.

McNeill's lawyers just want the jury to hear selected parts of a transcript of the interview. However, McNeil was adamant. He told the judge he wants the jury to see and hear all of his taped interview with investigators.

"If I allow the statement in, you want the entire statement to be presented to the jury? Is that correct," asked Ammons.

McNeill replied, "The entire transcript, the entire video tape. Yes."

Ammons tried several times to convince McNeill to follow his lawyers' advice.

"You understand that you are represented by two excellent criminal defense attorneys," asked Ammons.

McNeill replied, "Yes."

 ::snipping3::

 ::justice2nj2::

http://www.witn.com/home/headlines/McNeill-Wont-Testify-Defense-Rests-In-Shaniya-Davis-Murder-Case-207758601.html
McNeill Won't Testify; Defense Rests In Shaniya Davis Murder Case
May 16, 2013
Closing arguments will be presented next week in the trial of a Fayetteville man accused of raping and killing a 5-year-old girl more than three years ago.

Mario McNeill is charged with rape and murder in the death of 5-year-old Shaniya Davis in November 2009. After prosecutors finished presenting evidence Thursday morning, McNeill said he wouldn't testify.

His attorneys rested without presenting any evidence.

Closing arguments will be held Tuesday morning in a Cumberland County courtroom. The 32-year-old McNeill could face the death penalty if convicted.
 ::snipping3::

http://www.digtriad.com/news/article/285545/57/Shaniya-Davis-Murder-Trial-Winds-Down
Shaniya Davis Murder Trial Winds Down
May 21, 2013

Fayetteville, NC -- Attorneys are expected to summarize for jurors the case of a Fayetteville man on trial in the rape and murder of a 5-year-old girl in 2009.

Closing arguments in the Shaniya Davis murder case are scheduled for Tuesday in a Cumberland County courtroom. Defendant Mario McNeill could face the death penalty if convicted.

The 32-year-old decided not to testify and defense attorneys presented no evidence.
 ::snipping3::

McNeil's lawyers got it right -- what he did is un-defenseable. (sp)

http://www.digtriad.com/news/article/285810/1/Mario-McNeill-Guilty-In-Shaniya-Davis-Murder-Trial


Mario McNeill Guilty In Shaniya Davis Murder Trial


Fayetteville, NC -- A Fayetteville man has been found guilty for kidnapping and murdering 5-year-old Shaniya Davis in 2009.
 
Mario Andrette McNeill, 33, was found guilty of First Degree Murder, First Degree Kidnapping, Sexual Offense of a Child, Indecent Liberties with a Child and Human Trafficking, according to a report from WRAL. McNeill was acquitted for the charges of rape.
 
Jurors will now decide if McNeill will receive life in prison without parole or the death penalty.

 ::snipping3::

http://www.wral.com/fayetteville-man-guilty-of-kidnapping-killing-shaniya-davis/12478628/
Fayetteville man guilty of killing Shaniya Davis, not of raping her
May 23, 2013

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — A jury on Thursday convicted a Fayetteville man of kidnapping and killing a 5-year-old girl more than three years ago, but he was acquitted of raping her.

The eight-man, four-woman jury deliberated for about 7½ hours over two days before finding Mario Andrette McNeill, 33, guilty of first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, sexual offense of a child, indecent liberties with a child, human trafficking and sexual servitude in the death of Shaniya Davis.

McNeill showed no emotion as the verdicts were read in the quiet courtroom.
 ::snipping3::
Jurors will return next Tuesday to hear evidence before deciding whether McNeill should be sentenced to death or life in prison without parole.
 ::snipping3::
Prosecutors presented 12 days of testimony from 44 witnesses, tying McNeill to Shaniya through a security video at a Sanford hotel, hair from a hotel comforter and a blanket found in a trash can outside the girl's home, and soil from the gas pedal of his car, which a geologist said likely came from the site where Shaniya's body was found.

McNeill's original defense attorney also provided Fayetteville police with information that led to the discovery of Shaniya's body.

McNeill presented no evidence in his defense, and his attorneys argued that prosecutors couldn't prove where Shaniya was assaulted or when she died.

His DNA wasn't found on the girl, and he has maintained that he took her to the Sanford hotel at the request of her aunt and later handed her off to someone he thought was related to her.

Investigators say Shaniya's mother, Antoinette Nicole Davis, sold her daughter to McNeill to pay off a drug debt. Antoinette Davis is charged with first-degree murder, indecent liberties with a child, felony child abuse, felony sexual servitude, rape of a child, sexual offense of a child by an adult offender, human trafficking and making a false police report.

She will be tried later this year, but prosecutors aren't seeking the death penalty against her.

McNeill has maintained since his arrest that he didn't kill Shaniya. He even rejected a plea deal last month before his trial started that would have kept him off death row. That decision now lies with the jury.

 ::justice2nj2::

YES!!  ::justice2nj2:: ::monkeyflag3:: ::monkeywine2::

Why was he not guilty of raping her?

I'm not sure cookie -- but he was found guilty of : guilty of first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, sexual offense of a child, indecent liberties with a child, human trafficking and sexual servitude in the death of Shaniya Davis.
 ::MonkeyHang::

Good! He is despicable!

And:: He got the DEATH Penalty!!!!! Yeah, the JURY got it Right this time!!! Now, let's give her so called mom her justice!!

YES!   ::MonkeyGavel:: ::justice2nj2::

http://www.wral.com/jury-hands-down-death-sentence-for-shaniya-davis-murder/12493723/

Posted: 10:03 a.m. today
Updated: 5:45 p.m. today

Fayetteville child killer sentenced to death

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — A Cumberland County jury deliberated less than 40 minutes Wednesday before deciding that Mario Andrette McNeill should die for the November 2009 death of 5-year-old Shaniya Davis.

The eight-man, four-woman jury last week convicted McNeill, 32, of first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, sexual offense of a child, indecent liberties with a child, human trafficking and sexual servitude in connection with her death.

That decision took almost eight hours over two days, but jurors didn't even have to call out for lunch Wednesday before handing down the death sentence.

"I submit to you, without hesitation, that the only punishment appropriate in this case – for these crimes – is the death penalty," Assistant Cumberland County District Attorney Robby Hicks said in his closing argument Wednesday morning.

McNeill, who is the first person to be sentenced to death in Cumberland County in six years, declined to make a statement in court.

Shaniya's father, Bradley Lockhart, berated McNeill after the sentence was announced, saying he treated the entire trial as a joke and his demeanor made a mockery of the court.

"The media glorifies you as you walk in with smirks and smiles," Lockhart said. "I'm not going to worship you. I'm going to pray for you."

He added: "I think of those last seconds, and you were the last thing my daughter got to look at."

After offering no evidence in his defense during the trial, McNeill told Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons on Tuesday that he wanted no one to testify on his behalf before sentencing. He even forbade his lawyers from offering any closing arguments to jurors.

“My goal was freedom. I lost my freedom. What does it matter after that?” he said.

Lockhart and Shaniya's half-sister wept Tuesday as they described for jurors the difficulty in dealing with her death.

"It's been a long road," Lockhart said Wednesday. "At the end of this verdict, nobody has really won here. I'll never get Shaniya back. You took that from me."

District Attorney Billy West said McNeill showed no remorse for Shaniya's death.

"He showed no regard for her innocence when he kidnapped her from her home in the middle of the night," West said in his closing argument. "He showed no regard for her life when he murdered her and left her along desolate Walker Road."

Before McNeill was taken in handcuffs out of the courtroom, Ammons spoke to him.

"May God have mercy on your soul," he said. "You did not have to kill that child."

Ammons then turned to Shaniya's family.

"I can't give you justice," he said. "The jury has given you what we as humans – the best we humans can do – to give you justice. Justice would be if I reversed all of this, and I can't."

 ::snipping3::

Shaniya's body was found on Nov. 16, 2009, in a kudzu patch off N.C. Highway 87 on the Lee-Harnett county line, six days after her mother reported her missing from their Fayetteville mobile home.

An autopsy determined that she had been suffocated, and she had injuries "consistent with a sexual assault" shortly before she died, according to a medical examiner.

Assistant District Attorney Rita Cox told jurors that the girl died "a slow, agonizing death," with a "carcass wasteland for her burial site."

 ::snipping3::
West and Cox told jurors not to be swayed by McNeill's silence in court.

"It may be to invoke sympathy, it may be a simple act of defiance or it may be manipulation," West said. "I ask you to follow the law in this case.

"There's a lot he'd like you to forget," he said. "He wants you to forget that he had sex with Shaniya after he struck out with the 26 women he texted. ... He wants you to forget that he suffocates the life out of Shaniya Davis."

"Don't let it manipulate you into feeling sympathy for the defendant," Cox said.

 ::snipping3::

McNeill becomes the 153rd inmate on North Carolina's death row. The last person from Cumberland County sentenced to death was Eugene Johnny Williams, who was convicted in 2007 of killing two people in a dispute over a stolen motorcycle.

No executions have been carried out in the state since 2006.

Investigators say Shaniya's mother, Antoinette Nicole Davis, sold her to McNeill to pay off a drug debt. Davis is charged with first-degree murder, indecent liberties with a child, felony child abuse, felony sexual servitude, rape of a child, sexual offense of a child by an adult offender, human trafficking and making a false police report.

She will be tried later this year, but prosecutors aren't seeking the death penalty against her.

Video at the link

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=9119913

http://youtu.be/IN3oIdSMvgE

Mario McNeill Sentenced to Death
 fayobserver·324 videos

Published on May 29, 2013
Mario McNeill is sentenced to death for the 2009 murder of Shaniya Davis. Before formal sentence was pronounced, Shaniya's father, Bradley Lockhart, spoke to the court and directly spoke to McNeill. After sentence was imposed, we spoke with Cumberland County DA Billy West and Art Pope, one of McNeill's defense attorneys.

http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/05/29/1259879?sac=fo.home

Published: 01:36 PM, Wed May 29, 2013
Jury sentences Mario McNeill to death for the murder of Shaniya Davis

Staff photo by James Robinson
Mario McNeill is lead out of the courtroom in handcuffs after being sentenced to death Wednesday afternoon.

By Michael Futch
Staff writer

Mario McNeill was sentenced to death today for the murder of 5-year-old Shaniya Davis in November 2009.

McNeill, 33, declined the opportunity to speak before being sentenced by Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons.

Jurors deliberated a little more than a half-hour before reaching a decision.

"I can never get Shaniya back. You've taken that from me,'' said Bradley Lockhart, Shaniya's father. "You were the last thing my daughter got to look at.''

Ammons addressed McNeill before McNeill was escorted from the courtroom.

"You did not have to kill that child,'' Ammons said.

"Take him out of here now,'' Ammons told the bailiffs.

Ammons later apologized to Shaniya's family for not being able to bring them justice. He said the trial was the best that could be done.

Earlier in the day, Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West urged jurors to sentence McNeill to death.

West said the aggravating factors in the case outweighed the mitigating factors. Aggravating factors included McNeill's previous felony assault convictions and his conviction in this case on kidnapping and sex offense charges.

Mitigating factors, which McNeill had allowed his lawyers to compile but not present, included his use of drugs and alcohol at the time of Shaniya's kidnapping and death, the fact that he voluntarily went to the police to be interviewed after Shaniya was reported missing, and his relationship with his own children.

In a 35-minute presentation closing the prosecution's case in the sentencing phase, West told jurors the mitigating factors "certainly are insufficient" against the aggravating factors.

Jurors began deliberating about 12:15 and declined to stop for lunch. The sentence was announced at 1 p.m.

 ::snipping3::

The penalty phase began Tuesday. The state called three witnesses to the stand, including two members of Shaniya's family.

The defense lawyers yielded to the request of their client. Though evidence was lined up for the penalty phase, the defense didn't present any testimony. Ammons accepted McNeill's decision, saying that court law indicates that lawyers must abide by their client's wishes.

But he repeatedly questioned the 33-year-old McNeill on the issue: Was McNeill sure he didn't want the defense to present evidence - mitigating factors - or make final arguments to try to persuade the jury to spare his life?

"It doesn't matter really," McNeill said. "I prefer them not to."

Tuesday produced yet another emotional day in court, in what has played out as an often disturbing, bizarre case that's now in its eighth week.

Bradley Lockhart, and Shaniya's half-sister, Cheyenne Lockhart, gave emotional testimony for the prosecution.

Twice, Bradley Lockhart broke down while recalling his little girl, whose body was found in a wooded area off Walker Road in Lee County on Nov. 16, 2009, six days after she went missing. Asphyxiation was ruled as the cause of death. The jury concluded that McNeill was guilty of sex offense with a child.

"I guess whenever you talk about your kid," a flush-faced Lockhart said, "you think they're the best. It hurts to talk about her."

Cheyenne Lockhart told jurors that Shaniya was "like my Mini Me," always following her around, always wanting to put on her makeup and cling to her whenever she had to leave.

"It's hard," she said, pausing to regain her composure. "It's painful. Just to know she was once here and somebody took her away. There's not a day I don't think about her."

 ::snipping3::

McNeill could be seen smiling during portions of the day's proceedings. As he has done over the last couple of weeks, he spent much of his time making origami cranes. A pile of the bird-like figures were clustered together at his side on the defendant's table.

At one point, a stern-faced Ammons asked, "Are you listening?"

"I clearly don't mean any disrespect," Ammons said, "but what I'm saying is more important than that origami."

McNeill told Ammons that origami, which is the Japanese art of folding paper, helps him to think.

Though the defense had discussions with McNeill on Friday about his request not to argue his case, Alford told Ammons that his client had made the final decision earlier in the morning.

Ammons followed up by first pressing McNeill on the matter.

"Lawyers tell me you don't want to participate. Can you tell me why?" he asked.

"I would," McNeill said softly, "but I don't want to."

"I've seen you smile when you're saying that," Ammons said. "Do you understand how serious this is?"

"Yes."

The judge then asked the defendant if he understood that North Carolina's death penalty is real.

"Because we haven't put anybody to death in a long time doesn't mean we don't have the death penalty," Ammons said. "You understand this?"

"Yes."

"Because a judge recently reversed four death sentences and made them life doesn't mean we don't have a death penalty. Do you understand that there's a real possibility that the jury could sentence you to death and that that sentence could be carried out?"

"Yes."

"And you're telling me you don't want to resist that in any way?"

Again, McNeill answered with a yes.

His lawyers told the court that they opposed McNeill's decision but had found themselves at an impasse.

Besides first-degree murder, McNeill was found guilty of first-degree kidnapping, human trafficking with a child victim, sexual servitude with a child victim, sexual offense of a child and indecent liberties with a child.

Staff writer Michael Futch can be reached at futchm@fayobserver.com or 486-3529.

http://fayobserver.com/articles/2013/05/30/1260003?nid=

Published: 10:21 PM, Wed May 29, 2013
Bradley Lockhart, Shaniya Davis' father, reflects on Mario McNeill trial and verdict

By Michael Futch
Staff writer

Bradley Lockhart said he found no closure, no reason to celebrate Wednesday following the jury's verdict of death for the convicted killer of his daughter, Shaniya.

But at least, he said, he and his family have some answers.

And, he added, those answers bring some comfort.

As for his reaction to Mario McNeill's punishment, Lockhart said his position has never changed in the 43 months since the body of his 5-year-old daughter was found in a wooded area about 30 miles from her home.

"It's up to God and the justice system and these jurors, who made the decision," said Lockhart in a phone interview early Wednesday evening, hours after the sentencing phase had concluded.

"And I accept it, and I think it's a fair and just one," he said.

 ::snipping3::

"It's been difficult for everybody involved," he said. "This isn't new for me. My feelings haven't changed over the years. It still feels like it just happened. I guess in simple terms, nothing has changed. Really not with the verdict - the verdict with Mario and Shaniya. Although she's got some justice, you can never really bring her back."

Shaniya would have turned 9 years old June 14, he said.

"To have another birthday picture done is never going to happen," he said.

 ::snipping3::

Over the last three years, Lockhart said, he has served as an advocate to end child trafficking with several organizations, including Stop Child Trafficking Now. He anticipates another round of public speeches on behalf of Shaniya Speaks, a nonprofit group that works to raise awareness of sexual crimes against children.

He said he expects to be in Fayetteville for the trial of Antoniette Nicole Davis, Shaniya's mother. That trial could begin in the fall.

During court testimony, Lockhart said he had met Davis at a party. Their relationship, he said, was a brief one, and that he only learned she was pregnant with his child shortly before she gave birth.

Authorities said Davis gave Shaniya to McNeill to settle a drug debt.

As for her trial, Lockhart said, he is hoping for justice and the truth.

"Shaniya deserves the truth," he said. "I really want people to understand this isn't solely about Bradley Lockhart and her siblings, but truly about Shaniya and the justice she deserved."

Staff writer Michael Futch can be reached at futchm@fayobserver.com or 486-3529.

I am so glad this jury got it right!
 ::justice2nj2::

Now on to that POS Davis!

Me too! Bout time!

I'm so glad Mario McNeil was convicted and received the death penalty!!!  ::MonkeyDance::

Now onto Davis. May justice be served. RIP Shaniya.

 ::rhino::

Good to see you Tina Bee!   ::HelloKitty::

Hoping and praying for justice for Shaniya.  We're almost there.   ::justice2nj2::

 ::MonkeyNoNo:: ::MonkeyMad:: ::MonkeyTears::

http://www.wral.com/slain-girl-s-mom-i-gave-her-to-him-to-cover-200-/13011101/

Posted: 10:34 a.m. today
Updated: 12:03 p.m. today

Slain girl's mom: 'I gave her to him to cover $200'

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — A judge ruled Friday that statements made to police by the mother of a 5-year-old Fayetteville girl who was murdered almost four years ago can be used during her upcoming trial, despite defense arguments that investigators bullied her during days of questioning.

Antoinette Nicole Davis, 29, faces numerous charges in connection with Shaniya Davis' death, and defense attorneys said prosecutors should be barred from introducing her statements to police as evidence at her trial, which is scheduled to start Oct. 28.

Shaniya was reported missing from her Fayetteville home on Nov. 10, 2009, and Fayetteville police talked to Davis, other family members and neighbors to generate information to help locate her.

Davis' lawyers said Friday that investigators questioned her on and off over four days but never advised her of her rights to remain silent and to confer with an attorney. Prosecutors responded by saying that she was never under arrest during the questioning – she was there only to help police find her daughter – and so never had to be read her Miranda rights.

"She was arguably coerced and bullied by two law enforcement officers," defense attorney D.W. Bray said, noting that, by the fourth day of questioning, she was sobbing and, in the words of prosecutors, "broke."

"I gave her to him to cover $200. He was only supposed to have sex," a weeping Davis told investigators.

The statement led police to Mario Andrette McNeill and eventually to Shaniya's body, which was found Nov. 16, 2009, in an overgrown field on the Lee-Harnett county line. An autopsy determined that she had been sexually assaulted and suffocated.

McNeill, 32, was convicted in May of kidnapping and assaulting Shaniya before killing her, and he was sentenced to death.

Prosecutors allege that Davis gave Shaniya to McNeill to settle a drug debt.

She had been charged with first-degree murder, first-degree rape, first-degree sex offense, child abuse, sexual servitude with a child, child abuse sexual act, human trafficking and indecent liberties with a child. Prosecutors on Friday also charged her with criminal conspiracy and first-degree kidnapping.

 ::snipping3::

 ::MonkeyShocked::

http://www.wral.com/mother-pleads-guilty-in-shaniya-davis-death/13011614/

Posted: 12:18 p.m. today
Updated: 9 minutes ago
Mother pleads guilty in Shaniya Davis' death
Antoinette Davis in court

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — The mother of a 5-year-old Fayetteville girl who was murdered almost four years ago will spend at least 17 years in prison after pleading guilty Friday to several charges in her death.

Antoinette Nicole Davis, 29, entered Alford pleas to second-degree murder, human trafficking, first-degree kidnapping, first-degree sex offense, felony child abuse with prostitution, child abuse and indecent liberties with child. She was sentenced to between 210 and 261 months in prison.

An Alford plea allows a defendant to plead guilty, while maintaining his or her innocence, because there is sufficient evidence to find him or her guilty. The plea deal, which included the dismissal of a first-degree rape charge, heads off a trial that was scheduled to begin Oct. 28.

Shaniya Davis was reported missing from her Fayetteville home on Nov. 10, 2009. Her body was found six days later in an overgrown field on the Lee-Harnett county line, and an autopsy determined that she had been sexually assaulted and suffocated.

Mario Andrette McNeill, 32, was convicted in May of kidnapping and assaulting Shaniya before killing her, and he was sentenced to death.

The hastily arranged plea followed a pre-trial motions hearing Friday morning in which Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons denied an attempt by the defense to keep Davis' statements to police out of her trial.

Defense attorney D.W. Bray argued that investigators browbeat Davis over four days of questioning about Shaniya's disappearance, and they never advised her of her rights to remain silent or to confer with an attorney. On the fourth day, he said, she finally "broke."

"I gave her to him to cover $200. He was only supposed to have sex," a sobbing Davis told investigators.

Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West said McNeill previously lent Davis $200 to buy food and pay for a hotel room when she and her children were homeless. Information in an autopsy report claimed the debt to be drug-related, but West said that was incorrect.

McNeill came to the Fayetteville trailer park in November park to have sex with someone else, West said, but when that fell through, he went to Davis' trailer and demanded that she either pay him the $200 or have sex with him.

When Davis refused, McNeill took Shaniya instead, West said, adding that investigators never believed her claims that she tried to stop McNeill from taking her daughter.

A feces-covered blanket found in a trash can outside Davis' trailer suggests that Shaniya was sexually assaulted in the trailer, West said.

The rape charge was dismissed against Davis because McNeill was acquitted of that charge, which would have made it difficult to convict her, West said. Also, prosecutors reduced a first-degree murder charge against Davis to second-degree murder, he said, because they didn't feel they had enough evidence to obtain a first-degree murder conviction.

I hope she spends a lot more than 17 years in prison.  JMO   ::MonkeyNoNo::

http://www.wncn.com/story/23728590/judge-rules-antoinette-davis-statements-can-be-used

Antoinette Davis reaches plea deal
Posted: Oct 18, 2013 11:19 AM CST Updated: Oct 18, 2013 12:41 PM CST
by WNCN Staff
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. -

A plea deal has been reached for Antoinette Davis in a Fayetteville courtroom.

Davis entered an Alford plea, which means she doesn't admit guilt but realizes evidence could convict her.

She pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, multiple sex charges and conspiracy. The charges also include first-degree kidnapping and conspiracy to commit.

She is expected to get 17.5 years to 21 years and 9 months in prison.

 ::snipping3::

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=9291946

Antoinette Davis pleads guilty in murder of daughter Shaniya
Updated at 01:52 PM today

(http://cdn.abclocal.go.com/images/wtvd/cms_exf_2007/automation/images/9292283_448x252.jpg)
Shaniya Davis and her mother Antoinette.

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) -- Antoinette Davis entered guilty pleas Friday to several charges against her in the 2009 kidnapping and murder of her daughter Shaniya.

In a deal worked out with prosecutors, Davis did not plead guilty to first-degree murder - as originally charged - but entered so-called Alford pleas to second-degree murder and a host of other charges including first-degree kidnapping and felony child abuse.

Under North Carolina law, an Alford plea means the defendant does not admit guilt, but concedes prosecutors have enough evidence to likely get a conviction.

Cumberland County Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons sentenced Davis to between 17 and a half and 21 years in prison.

 ::snipping3::

http://fayobserver.com/articles/2013/10/17/1289977

Published: 07:22 AM, Thu Oct 17, 2013
Man convicted of killing Shaniya Davis kept separate from other inmates

By Michael Futch
Staff writer

The man convicted of murdering 5-year-old Shaniya Davis is largely being confined to his death row cell at Central Prison for security reasons.

Mario Andrette McNeill, who was sentenced to death in May for killing Shaniya in November 2009, will remain on intensive control status on death row indefinitely, said Keith Acree, a spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety.

"I don't know when it will end," he said Wednesday. "He has regular control reviews. He's evaluated periodically."

According to the state Department of Correction Division of Prisons, intensive control status is a long-term removal from other inmates for repeatedly disruptive behavior, noncompliance with instructions and orders, or a transition following assignment to maximum control status.

In June, McNeill was reassigned from maximum to intensive control status at the prison, Acree said.

"He's confined to his cell 23 hours a day. He comes out for a shower and brief recreation period," Acree said. "It's very limited contact with other (death-row) inmates, and he probably has reduced privileges."

McNeill, 33, was involved in an assault in January 2011 during a safe-keeping period at Central Prison before his trial in Cumberland County, Acree said, and there has been at least one other infraction since.

But those infractions, he said, are not the reason he is being held in confinement.

"It was a management decision based on security concerns," he said. "These concerns have existed ever since he has been there."

On May 29, a 12-member jury took 39 minutes to recommend that McNeill be sentenced to death. The same jury convicted him of kidnapping, sexually abusing and murdering Shaniya, whose body was found in woods off N.C. 87.

 ::snipping3::

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=9291946

Antoinette Davis pleads guilty in murder of daughter Shaniya
Updated at 02:07 PM today

bump

bump

Rest in peace Shaniya Nicole.   ::MonkeyAngel::  This case haunts me.   ::MonkeyNoNo::

MuffyBee, it haunts me too...it makes me sick at heart..a 5 year old sold for a drug debt by a woman who valued her own sexuality more than the life of her adorable little girl....I am thankful though..because it was reported that she was going to get away with it completely and just have time served for her punishment...I am thankful that Judge Ammons gave her 17 years to 21 years to reflect on the reality of life choices and the travesty of mothering she committed..She is NO mother..moms LOVE their children and would NEVER EVER sell them to a drug dealer or anyone else for any reason. She should have offered her own life for her debt..whether it was a drug debt (which I believe) or a loan for housing as she recently released..she never should have had physical custody of Shaniya. The people in her little life should have protected her more and the powers that be should have stepped in when the first calls about abuse in that house were raised..i wonder like others where the son she did have custody of and the baby she had in prison are at and with whom they are living...hope all who were involved and had decision power learned a real lesson from all of this and have made changes to how things are done/monitored/decided/passed over/neglected/etc..I will never forget the picture of the monster carrying this sweet angel in that hotel elevator shot..it is burned into my memory...God speed Shaniya..Rest in Peace now baby..you are in Heaven's arms and will never be in pain or hurt again...Jamms

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=773513285999005&set=a.297306586953013.98898.252896698060669&type=1&theater

(https://scontent-b-dfw.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/578139_773513285999005_22220515_n.jpg)

 ::MonkeyTears::

Sorry I am so late in posting this:

 ::snipping3::

http://www.fayobserver.com/news/local/court-rejects-mother-of-murdered--year-old-shaniya-davis/article_d1ef757b-2d03-5460-9171-ffb3b266dc46.html

Days later, Davis admitted that she had given Shaniya to Mario Andrette McNeill, a convicted drug dealer, so that he or another person could have sex with the child. This was to settle a $200 debt.

 ::snipping3::

death.

Davis had wanted a trial instead but only if statements she made to the police in the days before she was arrested would be kept from the jury. It was in these statements that Davis lied about what happened to Shaniya and later admitted that she gave the girl to McNeill to settle the debt.

Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons ruled that the statements could be used against Davis.

In her appeal, a lawyer for Davis argued that Ammons should have kept those statements out on the premise that they were taken in violation of Davis' constitutional right to remain silent. The lawyer said Davis would have reasonably believed she was in custody at the time or felt coerced into making the statements.

 ::snipping3::

McNeill and Davis are both vile creatures.   ::MonkeyNoNo::

Muffy  ::bee::

somehow vile doesn't even begin to cover it.  All for $200

We need to make up a word!

Sister, you're absolutely correct that vile doesn't even begin to cover it.   ::MonkeyNoNo::   I'm at a loss to find the right word/words. 

e-vile

 ::MonkeyMad::

I have hard feelings towards her father as well. He really let her down in my opinion...
The egg donor is horrendous. How anyone who could allow this to happen to her own baby is way beyond my world.
If Shaniya had survived this rape attack, she would have pimped out by this so called mother to pay for her drug habit to other perverts.

Cookie, I agree.  Sometimes death really is better than life.

I think of you often pretty girl!

I come by when I can, just to let the world know this child is not forgotten. 
There are just some cases you never forget,

 ::MonkeyAngel::

Amen  ::MonkeyAngel::

 ::MonkeyTears::

Amen from me too. Makes me sad