Mom at trial says she knew girl would die
A Kansas City, Missouri woman testifying in a trial about the death of her daughter admitted that the child’s injuries were life threatening, but she refused to get her medical attention anyway.
Testifying in her husband’s first-degree murder trial, Michelle Johnson said she watched Harrell Johnson kick little Erica Green in the head and later helped him dump the girl’s decapitated body in a wooded area of Kansas City.
A police officer found Erica’s naked, headless naked body in April 2001. Lacking an identity, she was known only as “Precious Doe” until 2005, when a community activist received a tip Harrell Johnson’s grandfather in Muskogee, Okla., where the couple lived.
Harrell Johnson’s trial began Monday in Jackson County Circuit Court, and prosecutors completed their presentation Tuesday with Michelle Johnson’s testimony and a videotaped confession by the 29-year-old defendant.
The defense also rested, without calling any witnesses, and closing arguments are expected Wednesday. The defense admits that Harrell Johnson kicked the girl, but contends that the act was not premeditated, as required for a first-degree murder conviction.
Information from: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h2hoq...
