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Stepmother Pleads Guilty In Girls Death

Dec 7, 2006 05:19 PM EST
by: Minna Sugimoto

(KHNL) - The stepmother of a girl who was beaten to death last year faces 20 years in prison after changing her plea to guilty Wednesday morning.

Delilah Williams admitted she participated in a pattern of assault, which resulted in the child's death.

In July 2005, paramedics responded to the family's home at Wheeler Army Airfield and found five-year-old Talia Williams unresponsive. Prosecutors say the girl had bruises all over her body, a cut on her back, and a clump of hair missing from her head.

Her father, Army Specialist Naeem Williams, is scheduled to go to trial in October. He may get the death penalty if he's convicted of first-degree murder.

Under a plea agreement with prosecutors, Delilah Williams is expected to testify against her husband.

[Admin]

Child's killing too brutal to reveal?

Thursday, December 7, 2006

By Peter Boylan
Advertiser Staff Writer


A woman who yesterday admitted to taking part in the brutal death of her 5-year-old stepdaughter could be at risk of "bodily harm or injury" if details of the girl's slaying are released to the public, her lawyer argued.

In requesting that parts of a plea agreement involving Delilah S. Williams, 23, be sealed, assistant federal public defender Alexander Silvert also stated the graphic and heinous nature of the description could taint the jury pool in the trial of Williams' husband, who could face the death penalty if convicted in the child's death.

Federal Magistrate Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi, who accepted Williams' guilty plea yesterday, granted the request by Silvert, and by assistant U.S. attorney Marshall H. Silverberg, to seal parts of the plea agreement.

The sealed portions, which run to about seven pages, "are not a detailed recitation, but merely an outline of what happened in relation to the charge to which the defendant is pleading guilty," the agreement states.

Kobayashi set a Wednesday deadline for counsel or the news media to file objections to the sealing of the portions.

The Honolulu Advertiser plans to object to the sealing of parts of the plea agreement and has retained First Amendment attorney Jeffrey S. Portnoy to represent the newspaper.

A superseding indictment filed Oct. 12 in U.S. District Court charged Naeem J. Williams, 26, with two counts of first-degree felony murder and Delilah Williams with one count of first-degree felony murder.

Naeem Williams' trial is set to start Oct. 16.

Silverberg, Silvert and Naeem Williams' attorney, David Klein, who was present at yesterday's plea, would not comment yesterday.

ASSAULTS 'INTENTIONAL'

Delilah Williams yesterday admitted in federal court to an intentional "pattern and practice" of assault that resulted in the death of Talia Emoni Williams, who was found unresponsive on July 16, 2005, at an apartment at Wheeler Army Airfield.

"I assaulted Talia, my 5-year-old stepchild," said Williams, speaking in U.S. District Court yesterday. "The assaults, they were intentional and they weren't by accident or mistake."

In exchange for her plea, Williams will testify against her husband in the guilt phase of his trial but not during the sentencing portion. The government also will dismiss charges of assault and evidence tampering, which involved allegations that the couple cleaned "off the blood from minor child T.E.W. that was on the walls and floors because it was evidence of their abuse ... "

DEAL COULD CHANGE

Court documents state that prosecutors will be free to move to withdraw the agreement if Delilah Williams later changes her testimony substantially from what is contained in the plea deal.

In the document, prosecutors give an example of what such "materially different" testimony could entail, stating "(for example, that she and not Naeem Williams was the one who inflicted the final blow before Talia died) ... "

If U.S. District Judge David Ezra accepts the plea agreement, Williams faces 20 years in prison, up to a $250,000 fine and a $100 assessment fee for the felony murder charge.

Her sentencing is set for April 16 at 2:15 p.m.

Delilah Williams admitted yesterday that "at some time after Dec. 13, 2004, and culminating in the death of Talia E. Williams on July 16, 2005," she did "unlawfully kill T.E.W., a child, in the perpetration of part of a pattern and practice of assault and torture against a child," according to the plea agreement.

Talia Williams died after she was beaten and knocked to the floor of her apartment, court documents state. An autopsy found she died of "inflicted head trauma due to battered child syndrome."

WETTING PUNISHMENT

The day Talia died, Delilah Williams told U.S. Army investigators, Naeem Williams spanked Talia with a belt for wetting herself, according to court documents.

He struck her later that day after she wet herself again. This time, the child fell and hit her head on the floor. She lost consciousness, and the Williamses waited before calling 911, court documents state. When paramedics arrived, Talia was unresponsive and without a pulse. She was taken to Wahiawa General Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Naeem Williams told investigators that he hit Talia almost every day, court documents state.

He is believed to be the first in the country to face the death penalty under a provision passed by Congress three years ago for first-degree murder cases involving "a pattern or practice of assault or torture against a child or children."

[Admin]

Soldier indicted in death of daughter

February 17, 2006

By Peter Boylan
Honolulu Advertiser Staff Writer


A Schofield Barracks soldier charged last year with beating his 5-year-old daughter to death was indicted Wednesday morning on a single count of first-degree murder, according to an indictment filed in U.S. District Court.

If convicted, Naeem Williams, 25, faces life in prison or the death penalty.

The military charged Williams with murder on July 28, but later transferred the case to the U.S. Attorney's office. His wife, Delilah Williams, 21, was charged by criminal complaint on a single count of first-degree murder on July 18.

Delilah Williams, the stepmother of 5-year-old Talia Williams, has yet to be formally charged and the case against her remains open and ongoing, according to the U.S. attorney's office. Agents with the FBI continue to investigate the case against Delilah Williams.

David F. Klein, an attorney representing Naeem Williams, declined to comment about how he would handle the case now that Williams has been indicted.

"We're concerned on behalf of Mr. Williams but we're hoping they (the federal government) don't seek the death penalty," he said yesterday.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Wes Porter, who is prosecuting the case for the government, declined comment yesterday.

Porter and U.S. Attorney Ed Kubo will formulate a recommendation on the death penalty issue that has to be approved by U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

Prosecutors originally charged Naeem Williams based on a new federal provision that those who repeatedly engage in a "pattern and practice of assault and torture against a child" to the extent that the child dies may be charged with first-degree murder.

The provision was passed by Congress last year.

Talia Williams died July 16, after she was beaten and knocked to the floor of her Wheeler Army Airfield apartment. An autopsy found she died of "inflicted head trauma due to battered child syndrome."

Talia was taken to the hospital July 16 after emergency medical personnel were called to the family's apartment and found her unresponsive. She was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Talia's death came after what has been described as months of daily beatings, and her body was removed from a blood-spattered apartment.

The day Talia died, Delilah Williams told U.S. Army investigators, Naeem Williams spanked Talia with a belt for wetting herself, according to court documents.

He struck her again later that day after she wet herself again. This time the child fell and hit her head on the floor. She lost consciousness, but the Wil-liamses did not immediately call 911. When paramedics arrived, she was unresponsive and without a pulse.

[sherfly6996]

I was reading a lot of the comments and articles people wrote and the comments to what others wrote. I just cannot believe someone had the nerve to blame Bush for this beautiful innocent little girls death. Bush had nothing to do with her sick, very sick sadistic father beating he rto death while her stepmother just stood there allowing it to happen. She could of stopped it, please get real she is not an innocent victom. One he is military and she could of destroyed his entire world for hitting her. As a military wife of 12 years I know that. I was living in Haliamono Military Reservation at the time, just got there as a matter of fact and that shoot hit hard. I cryed for that little sweet child forever, god how could you she was your little girl. A woman like Delilah should not have the privledge of being a mother, would she of let him beat her child like that? No, she would of put a stop to the abuse . My heart goes out to you Tarshia, because in my eyes you truely are the victom here now. You will never get over the pain and for that from one parent to another I am truely sorry. If I could reach you I would hug you, what happened to you is grossly unfair and just goes to show you how truely ignorant child protective services truely is. I guess they forgot the meaning of protective on this one. As for you " The Humble Devildog" how could you blame the president for one mans ignorance, he was a sicko, not Bush....