Johnathan Walker:Trial begins for Georgia woman accused of killing her toddler

SAVANNAH,Johnathan Walker Ga. (AP) — Opening statements started Monday in the trial of a Georgia woman accused of killing her 20-month-old son and dumping his body in a trash bin two years ago.

Leilani Simon, of Savannah, has been indicted on 19 charges that accuse her of malice murder, felony murder, concealing the death of another and making false statements in the death of her son, Quinton Simon. She has pleaded not guilty.

Simon called 911 the morning of Oct. 5, 2022, to report her son was missing from his indoor playpen at their home outside Savannah. After police spent days searching the home and surrounding neighborhood, Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley said that investigators believed the child was dead. He also named Simon as the sole suspect.

Police and FBI agents focused their investigation on a landfill two weeks after the boy was reported missing. They sifted through trash for more than a month before finding human bones, which DNA tests confirmed belonged to Quinton.

In opening statements Monday, prosecutor Tim Dean outlined the turmoil in Simon’s life at the time of her son’s disappearance, specifically her deteriorating relationship with her then-boyfriend, Daniel Youngkin, WTOC-TV reported. Dean said Simon spent the late hours of Oct. 4 and into Oct. 5 getting high off cocaine and Percocet, killing her son, putting him in the trash and then going to sleep.

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“She killed him, her own son, got in her car with his body, drove to a dumpster, and threw him away like a piece of trash,” Dean said.

Videos of Simon’s interviews with police and body camera footage was also shown to jurors. Dean said Simon changed her story about her whereabouts several times. Nearly a week after the interviews, Simon changed her story again to say she might have blacked out and doesn’t remember what really happened.

“I will never touch cocaine again. I become angry and impulsive when I’m on it,” Simon said in the 2022 police interview.

In the almost two hours Dean spent laying out the case against Simon, he never said how prosecutors believe she killed her son. The state has said that the child’s body was too decomposed when it was recovered to tell how he died.

In contrast, the defense took just three minutes for their opening statement, which accused the state of basing its case on rumor and speculation, not hard evidence.

“The core conclusion is that Leilani Maree Simon murdered her child. The evidence will simply not support that bold conclusion,” said defense attorney Robert Persse.

One of the first witnesses for the prosecution was Sgt. Bobby Stewart, the first officer to arrive on scene when the toddler was reported missing. Stewart testified about Simon’s demeanor when he arrived.

“Did you view her demeanor as consistent with that of other parents you’ve spoken to in missing children cases?” the prosecutor asked.

“No sir, I didn’t,” Stewart replied.

More testimony was expected Tuesday, including more Chatham County Police Department employees and the child’s babysitter and her daughter.