PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Prosecutors and defense attorneys wrapped up closing arguments on Friday in the trial against a mother and her boyfriend — both of whom are accused of killing 4-year-old Damari Carter in 2023.
Carter was found dead inside a duffel bag in West Philadelphia in March 2024. Dominique Bailey, Carter’s mother, told police her son was hit and killed by a car in December 2023, but investigators said there’s no evidence to support that.
Prosecutors read aloud the transcript of a voicemail that Bailey left for Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, asking to check on her son. Officials said there was no record that the boy was admitted to the hospital.
A lawyer for Bailey told the jury she had “love blindness,” which led her to make poor decisions that ultimately resulted in her son’s death.
A lawyer for Kevin Spencer, Bailey’s boyfriend at the time, poked holes in the prosecution’s case, painting Bailey as an unfit mother who stuck her child on both Spencer and her own father.
Both sides referred to testimony from Bailey’s father, who told the courtroom he cared for his grandson and tried to potty train him right before his death.
He testified that once he told his daughter to follow rules and take care of her son, she left and moved in with Spencer, bringing Carter with her.
Prosecutors told jurors that Bailey and Spencer wanted to get rid of the child, and used evidence including surveillance footage from Spencer’s apartment.
Video footage showed Spencer carrying a duffle bag in December 2023 — the same bag Damari was found in months later.
Prosecutors also told the jury to consider testimony from a neighbor who lived in the same building as Spencer. The witness provided a video she recorded in the building, where you could hear loud slams and a child crying.
Both Spencer and Bailey declined to testify.
The jury will begin deliberations Monday morning. Both defendants face murder and conspiracy charges.
Deliberations will get underway on Oct. 5
Deliberations will get underway on Oct. 5
