Syracuse, N.Y. ― An attorney for the woman accused of killing her 5-year-old daughter said Monday that the woman’s ex-boyfriend was the one who fatally injured the child.
Latasha Mott, Neffy’s mother, has been accused of beating her daughter to death with a belt while she was in the shower at 127 West Beard Ave. on Jan. 6, 2024. Mott is charged with second-degree murder.
In court Monday, Mott’s attorney, Don Kelly, said Corrice Parks is the one who fatally injured Neffy, not Mott.
Parks is not facing any homicide charges connected to the fatal beating. He is charged with concealment of a human corpse and first-degree hindering prosecution.
He is accused of working with Mott, days after the child’s death, to hide Neffy’s body in a field on Syracuse’s East Side. Neffy’s body was not discovered until months later.
Remembering Nefertiti “Neffy” Harris
This is the first time Kelly has placed the blame on Parks in open court. Kelly said he has made their position clear to the court as the judge considers trying the case separately.
Parks attorney, Susan Carey, has pushed for the cases to be tried separately because Mott’s defense could incriminate her client.
Mott’s statements to police can be used against both defendants due to a rare exception to Miranda rights.
Carey says that Mott’s statements require the cases to be tried separately because she cannot cross-examine the woman if they are tried together.
Prosecutors, in an attempt to prevent the cases from being separated, told the judge they would not use the statements Mott made to police about Parks.
Carey said there are still statements prosecutors plan to use at trial that could raise issues. She said there is a clip of Mott’s interview where she says Parks was in the home the night of the fatal beating. There are also clips where Mott discusses their relationship and the problems they had, Carey said.
Judge Matthew Doran has not ruled on whether the cases will go to trial separately. He has given Carey more time to file written arguments on the matter.
Currently, Mott and Parks are scheduled to go to trial together in January.
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