After being released from jail, Simon’s mother, Quinton, made a desperate plea in connection with the 19 charges related to her toddler’s death.
Leilani Simon, a 23-year-old individual, is being accused of committing acts of physical violence against her 20-month-old offspring and getting rid of the child’s remains in a waste container during the month of October in the previous year.
Lawyers representing Leilani have submitted a request to free the Georgia mother from the Chatham County Detention Center on bail.
While searching for his deceased body, law enforcement officers disclosed that Quinton’s remains were discovered at a close-by garbage dump prior to Leilani’s apprehension in late November.
She has entered a plea of not guilty to all charges and has been incarcerated for a total of 100 days.
The local NBC affiliate, WSAV, reported that the judge who presided over the initial hearing did not appear, and no bond was set for her.
In accordance with the legal regulations of Georgia, a bail must be established within a period of 90 days after being incarcerated.
After a period of 90 days, the defense attorney can request the court to either establish it or release their client.
The criminal defense lawyer informed the local media that if Leilani is set free, she might have the opportunity to meet with her legal team and review crucial video evidence that could potentially be used against her as they work on building a case for the court.
According to an indictment observed by WSAV, the 22-year-old purportedly assaulted Quinton “with an item” at the time of his death, but records assert that it remains uncertain which proof resulted in her apprehension.
Little Quinton vanished from his grandmother’s residence in Savannah, Georgia, on October 5th.
Leilani reportedly left her mother’s home early the next morning to meet her drug dealer at the Azalea mobile home park and dispose of Quinton’s body in the dumpster behind the court documents.
The Chatham County Police reported the tragic death of the toddler, who was just 20 months old, and revealed that the child’s body was accidentally disposed of at a landfill.
Quinton’s skeletal structure was verified to be the ones uncovered, with genetic analysis subsequently detecting the remnants of a young child on November 18, after an extensive search undertaken by Chatham law enforcement for a duration of one month.
Leilani was promptly apprehended and accused of her son’s homicide.
In the meantime, Quinton’s grandmother, Billie Jo Betterton, alternatively known as Billie Jo Howell, was arrested on Monday for showing disrespect to the court.
A photograph of Jo Howell depicted her wearing an orange smock for suicide prevention.
Howell had guardianship of 20-month-old Quinton at the time of his vanishing.
After Leilani’s apprehension, Howell expressed her thoughts in a heartfelt TikTok video.
A TikToker inquired Howell: “Why were you sheltering Leilani while she was aware of her responsibility for Quinton’s death throughout?”
Through sobbing, she replied: “Why would you presume I did? I have lost a great deal, yet no one shows any concern.”
Howell discovered that she intended to release herself, and a close acquaintance informed WTOC that Leilani had admitted herself to a rehabilitation facility a few weeks prior.
The source added that she had to make “one of the hardest decisions of her life,” informing the FBI about Leilani’s plans.
Leilani did not appear at a court hearing in January where a motion to determine media coverage of the trial was delayed.
Quinton’s body is still located at an FBI forensic laboratory in Virginia.
Leilani is set to appear at a legal proceeding hearing on March 23.