A judge will allow a jury to see graphic pictures of the injuries to 4-year-old Jada Norfleet, who was beaten to death with a piece of wood.
Both Jada’s father, John Norfleet, and stepmother, Shavonn Norfleet, are charged with her murder. Their lawyer argued Thursday to keep those pictures out of court, but a judge put restrictions in place when allowing them to be seen.
They are pictures that were taken at the medical examiner's office, showing Jada's injuries. The pictures are so bad the defense didn't want jury to see any of them.
John Norfleet's attorney's wanted to stop the prosecution from showing photos of Jada after her death to the jury. The defense called them misleading, horrible and graphic.
We asked law and safety attorney Ronald Roberts what is the defense’s strategy.
"They are trying to keep the jury from focusing strictly on the photos and making their decision or reaching a verdict based on the photos alone," Roberts said.
The attorneys, along with the judge, huddled together and looked at the pictures one by one. They talked about Jada’s brutal injuries; bruises on her legs, shoulders, arms and head.
"When you see something that is that graphic, it sticks in your mind, so to speak, and that is something they may take back with them," Roberts said.
The judge will allow the jury to see most of the pictures, but won't allow them to see any one photo more than once, a move Roberts said forces attorneys to only use the photos to prove facts of the case and not play on the jury's emotions.
We also learned another one of Norfleet’s kids said in a deposition that he was also punished with a piece of lumber much like the one allegedly used on Jada Norfleet.
Cox Media Group
