Jacksonville stepmother found guilty on two charges in death of child

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A jury found the stepmother of a 4-year-old that died after she was severely beaten with a plank of wood guilty on aggravated child abuse and manslaughter of a child, and not guilty of first-degree murder.

Shavonn Norfleet was accused of murder in the beating death of her stepdaughter, Jada Norfleet.

The jury deliberated for approximately three hours before they reached a verdict. She is expected to be sentenced on April 4.

Jada's father John Norfleet was found guilty of three charges, including first-degree murder, Wednesday.

Shavonn Norfleet took the stand in Duval County Court on Friday.

She was the first and only witness the defense team called to the stand.

Her attorney questioned her about the night Jada died for about 50 minutes.

She cried multiple times while on the stand.

She was asked multiple questions, including: Why did she did abuse Jada? Did she witness the final spanking her husband gave Jada? Did she see any bruises on Jada the day before?

When she was asked if she loved Jada, the whole courtroom got quiet.

“I loved Jada like she was my own. I fell in love with her, the first time, I held her," said Shavonn Norfleet.

Jada was killed in January 2015.

Officials said she was beaten to death for refusing to eat chicken nuggets.

Police said John and Shavonn Norfleet beat Jada repeatedly with a plank of wood until she went into cardiac arrest.

Both attorneys provided closing arguments Friday afternoon.

It took a jury 25 minutes to find John Norfleet guilty on three felony charges. He is expected to be sentenced in April.

Action News Jax reporter Larry Spruill was in the courtroom. Follow him on Twitter @LarryANjax for updates throughout the day.

Cox Media Group