DEPARTMENT of Public Safety crime scene investigator Lt. Mary Louise Tanaka was the first witness called by the prosecutor in the jury trial of Stacey Laniyo, one of the two women arrested following the death of a 3-year-old boy in March 2020.The other defendant is Lynn Fitial.
Assistant Attorney General Coleen St. Clair with paralegal Lani Diaz at the Guma Hustisia on Monday.
The boy was an adopted son of Fitial and was in the care of Laniyo, her partner, when the alleged incident occurred.
Tanaka told the court that she took the photographs of the child’s body as part of the investigation.
Tanaka also testified about the injuries sustained by the child, saying that these included scars, cuts, scratches and bruises.
Tanaka also identified the photos that she took. They were accepted as evidence but were not shown to the jury.
Laniyo, 37, represented by attorney Mark Scoggins, was charged with one count of child abuse.
According to the prosecution, the alleged abuse happened on or about March 12, 2020 when Laniyo struck the boy with a tree branch, a broom, or her hand or by biting him, “resulting in injury clearly beyond the scope of reasonable corporal punishment and harming or threatening the child’s physical or mental health and well-being.”
Fitial was charged with child abuse in violation of 6 CMC 5312(a)(2), made punishable by 6 CMC 5312(c).
According to the prosecution, on or about March 13, 2020, Fitial failed to provide medical care for the boy resulting in his death.
The court earlier granted the request of the two defendants to have separate trials.
During a cross-examination, Scoggins asked Tanaka if the injuries on the photos accurately showed the actual injuries of the boy.
Tanaka said, “It’s not accurate.”
Assistant Attorney General Coleen St. Clair, the prosecutor, asked the investigator to clarify her statement.
Tanaka said the photo prints were not “clear,” and did not show the full “extent” of the injuries she saw at that time.
In her opening statement, St. Clair told the jury that there will be testimonies from witnesses relating to the illness of the boy before his death, “that he was sick for over two weeks, that he was vomiting, coughing, and gagging.”
St. Clair said even Laniyo and her partner admitted that he was sick a week prior to his death.
“Laniyo committed numerous acts of physical abuse on the victim,” St. Clair added.
She said these acts included striking the boy with a tree branch multiple times because he had diarrhea and had defecated himself.
St. Clair quoted Laniyo as saying that she disciplined the child when he was naughty and when he did not do as he was told.
“She said she also taught him to tell the truth. She got mad at him when he was not being truthful.”
St. Clair said a week before the boy died, he had diarrhea and he defecated himself.
“And [Laniyo] asked him if he had pooped himself, she saw that he has diarrhea and it was running down his leg — you might wonder why she felt the need to ask him that when she could see it.”
Laniyo asked him twice and twice he said no, St. Clair said.
“This three-year old child, very well might not really know because he was so sick, and unable to control his bowels. [Laniyo] took him to the garage and hosed him down [there] and she took a tree branch and struck him. He had a mark across his back above his rear, and Laniyo told the police that that was his fault because he turned when she was striking him,” St. Clair said.
“It was also in this context that according to witnesses, three days before [the boy’s] death, the defendant was forcing this child to do push-ups and counting out loud — he was wheezing and coughing so loudly that he could be heard from the other room.”
St. Clair said an elderly household member grew concerned and banged on the door and screamed at Laniyo to let the boy out.
“She did not let him out. The counting continued, the wheezing and coughing got louder. Then she finally let him out. And when he went out of the room he basically collapsed on the elderly’s arms. He was gagging, coughing, and vomiting. The elderly could tell that he was burning with fever. So, the elderly went and got a wet cloth and wiped him down and brought him to the couch to sleep with her. The next morning, the boy was not moving. He was awake but just lying on the couch.”
St. Clair said another witness who was hired to help with household chores saw the boy “looking awful, and was just lying there at the couch and not moving.”
At noon, St. Clair said, “the elderly woman of the household tried to rouse the boy so he could get something to eat. She removed the sheet, and saw that he had bruising all over both arms and legs, purple and greenish in color. The elderly woman was very upset. About that time, Laniyo came out of the room, and was confronted by the elderly lady, ‘What have you done to him?’”
According to St. Clair, “Laniyo smiled and said, ‘I beat him with the broomstick and broke it on him because he was naughty.’ Both witnesses will testify that Laniyo was laughing as though it was a joke.”
St. Clair emphasized that the defendant is not on trial for the death of the boy but for the acts of abuse Laniyo allegedly committed.
For his part, Scoggins reserved his opening statement.
Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho is presiding over the jury trial. On Monday, eight jurors were empaneled, including two alternates.
Lynn Fitial is expected to testify when the jury trial resumes Tuesday, June 15, at 8:30 a.m.
