Chatham County Judge Tammy Stokes rules babysitter's testimony admissible in Leilani Simon trial

At a motions hearing on Thursday, Chatham County Superior Court Judge Tammy Stokes ruled to admit seven exhibits during the upcoming jury trial in the State of Georgia v. Leilani Maree Simon , while ruling to disallow three exhibits, according to court proceedings attended by the Savannah Morning News.

The hearing was the latest development in the murder case against Simon, who was indicted by a Chatham County grand jury indicted in December 2022 for the murder of her son, 20-month-old Quinton Simon. Quinton Simon's remains were found in a county landfill on Nov. 18, 2022, after nearly six weeks of searching by a multi-agency team of investigators. Leilani Simon first reported her son missing on Oct. 5, 2022.

There are 19 felony charges against Simon, including one count of malice murder, two counts of felony murder, one count of concealing the death of another, one count of falsely reporting a crime, and 14 counts of making false statements during the course of a police investigation.

More: Jury selection begins in trial of Leilani Simon, accused of murdering 20-month-old son

More: Chatham County grand jury indicts Leilani Simon in Quinton Simon's murder

More: Did Leilani Simon invoke her right to remain silent? Attorneys argue points during hearing

Which exhibits did the judge admit?

One of the exhibits that Stokes ruled inadmissible included Leilani Simon drinking tequila shots at popular Tybee Island bar, Sting Ray’s Seafood, about two weeks after she first reported Quinton missing ― something Leilani denied when questioned by police investigators. Stokes also ruled inadmissible a video of Leilani talking about her relationship with an ex-boyfriend.

Stokes also ruled not to admit a dispossessory notice filed by Leilani Simon's mother, Billie Jo Howell, with the Chatham County Magistrate Court in early September 2022 to evict Leilani and her then-boyfriend Daniel Youngkin from the home on Buckhalter Road. In her ruling, Stokes said she didn't find the evidence to be "intrinsic."

Stokes ruled to include two testimonies of individuals close to Leilani Simon when Quinton went missing, including a former neighbor who believes Leilani Simon committed the murder and another former neighbor who occassionally babysat Quinton.

The two witnesses were cross-examined by Leilani Simon’s defense attorney Martin Hilliard and direct-examined by Assistant U.S. Attorney and Special Chatham ADA Tim Dean. The two witnesses testified that they saw Simon threaten Quinton and, at times, abuse him. In one instance, the witness who babysat testified that Leilani Simon pushed Quinton into a pool and, another time, onto the pavement. The other witness testified that she sent a witness tip to police investigators about the case.

Dean argued during the hearing that the exhibits showed Simon’s motive and her state of mind, and therefore, was relevant to the case. Hilliard, meanwhile, argued that the exhibits Dean sought to admit didn’t prove the counts in the indictment, calling Dean’s attempts a “hail Mary pass.”

Jury selection, which began on Wednesday, will continue Friday morning.

Drew Favakeh is the public safety and courts reporter for Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at AFavakeh@Gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Chatham County Judge Tammy Stokes rules babysitter's testimony admissible in Leilani Simon trial