Jada Justice, 2 Abducted From Parked Car, Gary Indiana 6/16/09 (Body found)

[Northern Rose]

Prosecutor eyes death penalty in Jada case

CROWN POINT | Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter said Tuesday his office is undertaking a death penalty review against two defendants charged with the murder of 2-year-old Jada Justice.

The prosecutor's office on Friday charged Engelica Castillo, 18, and her boyfriend, Tim Tkachik, 24, both of Hobart, with the murder of the Portage toddler. Tkachik told police Jada died after a June 13 beating administered by Castillo, according to reports. Tkachik helped Castillo dispose of the body in a LaPorte County swamp, authorities said.

Carter said state law permits him to file a capital murder charge in a case where the victim was younger than 12, but he and his top deputies first must survey the evidence to determine if the case merits the ultimate punishment.

"We are still going through a lot of information. A lot of the physical evidence is being examined by our experts. That all has to be assessed before any decision as to a potential death penalty," he said.

Jada's mother, Melissa Swiontek, said Tuesday she supports a death penalty case.

"If that's the court's decision, I'm not going to oppose it," she said.

Swiontek said before her daughter was killed, she used to be against the death penalty. But she has since changed her mind, she said, "when it comes down to your baby."

She said she has no remorse for her cousin or Tkachik, saying "They're not even human ... if they can do that to my Jada.

"My baby's gone. They broke my heart. They have no right to be on this earth, if you ask me."

Lake County Deputy Chief Public Defender David Olson said Tuesday a death penalty charge will affect his office, which will be defending Castillo.

"We are just waiting for the state to decide," Olson said.

He said he would have to request additional tax dollars from the County Council if the prosecutor does go for the death penalty, which usually costs hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional law fees, expert-witness fees and other extraordinary expenses. He said his office will appoint two lawyers to defend Castillo if a capital murder charge is filed.

Olson said, "The question is whether the county can afford it? I don't know. It's very expensive."

Tkachik said Monday he may hire his own lawyer, although court sources said few private lawyers have the resources to undertake a death penalty murder defense.

Olson said a cheaper option for the county would be for the prosecutor to pursue a sentence of life imprisonment without possibility of parole.

Lake and Porter County judges have sentenced more than 23 men and women to death since capital murder was reinstated in 1977, but only one has been executed.

Kevin Charles Isom, 42, is awaiting trial later this fall on capital murder charges he killed his wife and her two children Aug. 6, 2007, at the Lakeshore Dunes Apartments in Gary's Miller section.

http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2009/07/01/news/top/doc0019c9d75415eb44862575e500838842.txt

[no rose colored glasses]

Thanks for all the updates, I hope they go after the death penalty.

[Deenie]

 

PORTAGE |

Jada Justice was carried for the last time Friday in the arms of those who loved her.

The 2-year-old's uncles, Michael Valdez and Lamont Joyce, cried openly as they carried the little girl's tiny white casket to its final resting place in Heritage Cemetery in Portage. More than 200 people followed silently behind them.

"We love you, Jada," one man called out into the silence as the casket was lowered into the earth.

I am as, as all are.. Praying for
Justice for Sweet Jada

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/D5DvIiHGygA&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b&amp;border=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/D5DvIiHGygA&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b&amp;border=1</a>

http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2009/07/03/updates/breaking_news/doc4a4e72dadb4c4520792330.txt

[MuffyBee]

Rest in Peace Little Jada

[no rose colored glasses]

Rest in Peace Jada 

[Lovinlife]

Sing with the Angels, Sweet Jada!  RIP 

[KarmaRoundUp]

God blesses you sweet little Jada.
Be safe and happy with God's beautiful Angel's

 

[Tracygirl]

Rest peacefully and play happily with angels  sweet baby girl. 

[pink angel]

Rest in peace little JJ.
Rest in peace Chastity. Take good care of little Jada.
You are both safe with god and both beautiful angels who will be missed and never forgotten.

July 3, 2009 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- Two young girls whose lives ended in violence were laid to rest Friday. Funerals were held for 2-year-old Jada Justice and 9-year-old Chastity Turner.

The girls lived in two different cities, but both of their lives had violent endings. One was killed by a bullet while giving her dog a bath. Investigators say the other was beaten.

video and article at link
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=6897241&rss=rss-espnChicago-wls-article-6897241

[Nut44x4]

Clarence Justice, father of Jada Justice, prays over her grave after her funeral Friday at the Heritage Cemetery in Portage. About 300 people attended the funeral.

[Nut44x4]

July 4, 2009
Mourners recall Jada with love at her funeral

PORTAGE -- After her short life tragically ended in abuse, 2-year-old Jada Justice was laid to rest Friday afternoon, and remembered for what she gave.

At the outdoor funeral at Edmonds and Evans Funeral Home, Jada's father, Clarence Justice of Hammond, said his daughter provided "two years of nothing but love."

The Portage toddler was buried in a small, white casket at Heritage Cemetery, next to the funeral home.

"She gave me the strength to start loving again," her father said after the burial service.

Reported missing last month in a case that gripped the region, Jada was found dead after a massive search effort in which her face was splashed across fliers and on television screens.

Melissa Swiontek, Jada's mother, said at the funeral that it was obvious her daughter touched a lot of lives.

"It's beautiful," Swiontek said of the funeral service, held under a yellow-and-white striped tent. "I'm glad a lot of people came and showed support."

Approximately 300 mourners gathered around as the Rev. Craig Harper conceded the world can be "a cruel place," but offered hope.

"God's with you," said the pastor at Calvary Tabernacle Church of Griffith. "Mom, Dad -- God's with you in this time."

With pink and white balloons and teddy bears brightening up the grounds, Harper said Jada is a vibrant symbol.

"She is a portrait of what love is," Harper assured. "She taught you the power of love."

Elizabeth Justice, Jada's stepmother, said the girl had "a beautiful attitude."

Jada found happiness "playing dress-up," watching movies and "hangin' with the girls," said April Soria, a close friend of Jada and her mother.

"There will never be another person like Jada; she was so original," said Soria, a 28-year-old Lake Station resident.

Mourners found comfort in spoken tributes to Jada, which included a spiritual declaration: "You are in God's hands now."

Photographs, a poster and a video screen showed warm images of Jada.

Charged with murdering the girl are her cousin, Engelica Castillo, 18, and Timothy Tkachik, 23, both of Hobart. They are also charged with neglect of a dependent, battery and false informing.

Jada's body was found June 25 near Otis, along Snyder Road, west of U.S. 421. The girl had numerous fractures on her skull.

Her body had been burned and encased in concrete before being left in a LaPorte County swamp.

Castillo and Tkachik had been baby-sitting Jada. Authorities said the suspects used drugs during that time.

Alejandra Gonzalez, who attended Friday's funeral service, said there was a message in Jada's death.

"You can't really trust your kids with anybody," the 29-year-old East Chicago resident said, noting that she knows Jada's father.

"It's just messed up that it happened to a really nice guy," Gonzalez said.

http://www.post-trib.com/1651919,jada-704.article

Carrying Jada Justice's casket, Lamont Joyce, left, of Michigan City, and Michael Valdez of East Chicago, uncles of the girl lead family and friends from the memorial to the grave site Friday during Justice's funeral.

[no rose colored glasses]

Thank-you for that article 

[Deenie]

Clarence Justice, father of Jada Justice, prays over her grave after her funeral Friday at the Heritage Cemetery in Portage. About 300 people attended the funeral.

Oh my Lord that is the most heart breaking Photo I have seen since - Adji's Grandmother's face......... Omg
I am praying for Clarence " Jada's Father" ... 

Justice for Jada
May it be soon.

[Sister]

Clarence Justice, father of Jada Justice, prays over her grave after her funeral Friday at the Heritage Cemetery in Portage. About 300 people attended the funeral.

Oh my Lord that is the most heart breaking Photo I have seen since - Adji's Grandmother's face......... Omg
I am praying for Clarence " Jada's Father" ... 

Justice for Jada
May it be soon.

Amen.

[Tina Bee]

The trial date for Engelica Castillo is set for December 7, 2009.

I really hope that she and Tkachik don't get away with this.

I've created a Facbook group in Jada's honor. The link to it is in my signature.

RIP Jada. Gone, but not forgotten.

[cookie]

the picture of her tiny casket was so so sad!

[MuffyBee]

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=6913179
Trial date set for Jada Justice murder
Monday, July 13, 2009 | 5:22 PM
  July 13, 2009 (WLS) -- A trial date has been set for a Northwest Indiana woman charged in the murder of two-year-old Jada Justice.

The trial of Engelica Castillo, 18, is set to begin on December 7th.

The Hobart woman is charged with murder, neglect of a dependent, battery and false informing. Castillo and her boyfriend Timothy Tkachik are both charged in the June 13th murder of Jada Justice.

The two-year-old's body was found more than a week after Castillo reported the girl missing. Castillo was her babysitter. She has entered a not guilty plea.

[Nut44x4]

Co-defendant in Jada Justice case enters guilty plea

By Susan Brown  Posted: Monday, June 21, 2010 1:00 pm

CROWN POINT | Timothy Tkachik, co-defendent in last summer's slaying of Portage toddler Jada Justice, pleaded guilty to two counts of neglect of a dependent Monday morning for his role in the child's death.

The two counts of neglect of a dependent are both Class A felonies, which carry sentences ranging from 20 to 50 years each, which would be served concurrently.

The plea agreement was taken under advisement by Lake Criminal Court Judge Thomas Stefaniak Jr., who set sentencing for Sept. 10.

Stefaniak sought assurance from Tkachik that he understood the agreement required his testimony against co-defendant Engelica Castillo.

Prosecutors last June charged Tkachik, 24, and his girlfriend, 19-year-old Castillo, with murder, two counts of neglect of a dependent, battery and false informing after the child's body was found burned and encased in concrete in a LaPorte County swamp.

Tkachik initially had confirmed Castillo's story that Jada had been abducted from a gas station in Gary's Glen Park neighborhood. He later told police Castillo killed the 2-year-old, and he helped dispose of the body, authorities said at the time of charging.

In the plea bargain reached with prosecutors, Tkachik admits to participating in beating the child, delivering several blows to the girl's head and holding the child down while Castillo repeatedly struck her with a belt.

Tkachik said the beatings June 12 through June 16 last summer began when the child irritated Castillo by, among other things, dumping a package of drink mix and spilling a container of syrup.

In the plea agreement, Tkachik contends Castillo responded by repeatedly striking the child and admits to ultimately joining in.

The child stopped breathing from her injuries while the couple were traveling in a car with neither obtaining medical attention for the girl. Instead, the couple allowed the child to die in the back seat of the car where they left her body.

Castillo, who is scheduled to go to trial Aug. 2, faces a potential sentence of life without parole if convicted of the crime.
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/gary/article_ab9ca207-a885-5f75-9301-e2b5f9a00415.html?print=1

[cookie]

oh Nut..that is too too sad to think of how this poor baby suffered..
I have a 2 yr old grand daughter ( in August) and the thought of someone harming her, let alone doing this horrible stuff to her would be enough to make me go off the deep end! I hope that these 2 get what is coming to them!

[Deenie]

http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/article_463ceef4-fa34-53f5-87c8-132ee25752e4.html

Little Jada is still waiting for her day......


August 2, & 3, 2010
CROWN POINT | Jury selection in the Engelica Castillo trial picked up speed late Monday afternoon but stalled Tuesday.

Ten jurors had been selected by late afternoon Monday, and the remaining two were selected about 2 p.m. Tuesday, but that was followed by the dismissal of six potential alternates.
Jury selection is set for a fourth round beginning about 8:30 a.m. today with 36 potential alternates.

Castillo, who turns 20 Friday, is on trial for the alleged murder of her young cousin, Jada Justice, of Portage. Authorities launched a nationwide search for the 2-year-old last summer after Castillo reported the child had been abducted. Jada's burnt body was found nine days later encased in concrete in a LaPorte County swamp.

The child had been in the care of Castillo and her then-boyfriend, Timothy Tkachik, 25, both of Hobart. Each was charged with murder, two counts of neglect of a dependent, battery and false informing after the child's body was found. Tkachik last month pleaded guilty to the two counts of neglect of a dependent, both Class A felonies. According to the plea bargain, when sentenced next month Tkachik faces a sentence of between 20 and 50 years for each count to be served concurrently. In exchange, Tkachik is expected to testify against Castillo, one of several major issues attorneys have presented for consideration to 100 potential jurors.

Jury candidates repeatedly were asked whether they could consider Tkachik's testimony credible, how they would view any lack of testimony by Castillo and whether they understood burden of proof is solely on the state.

Compounding the issues for potential jurors was that it will be up to the jury whether Castillo will be sentenced to life without parole if convicted on the charge of murder. A conviction of murder does not necessarily equate to a sentence of life without parole, authorities instructed the potential jurors. Jurors also may choose to sentence Castillo to a specific number of years in prison. Options also include acquittal on the murder charge and conviction on the lesser charges, they were told.

Some potential jurors said they could judge Castillo's guilt or innocence, but the prospect of also sentencing her troubled others. Yet others admitted a strong inclination toward finding Castillo guilty regardless of evidence.
__
http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local-beat/Jury-Selection-Begins-in-Jada-Justice-Trial-99802309.html
snipped:
Jury selection began today in the trial of a Hobart, Indiana woman accused of one of the most heinous local crimes in recent history.

Eighty-eight potential jurors were interviewed and four chosen, so far, to sit in judgment of Engelica Castillo, 20, who stands accused of murdering her two-year-old baby cousin, Jada Justice, in June 2009.
Castillo was babysitting Justice, in June 2009 when Castillo became irritated after Jada spilled a container of syrup. She then began beating the child, prosecutors say.
Castillo's boyfriend at the time, Tim Tkachik, 24, joined in and struck Jada in the head repeatedly while Castillo hit her with a belt. The two beat the child to death, prosecutors say.
Tkachik was charged with murder, battery and false informing, and neglect of a dependent. He led police to the body, which was found burned and encased in concrete in rural LaPorte County.

  Why is this case taking so long ?


  Jada