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Pammy Maye murder trial opens with sanity at center of foster son's death
Read the full articlePammy Maye's defense attorney conceded she killed five-year-old foster son Darnell Taylor, centering her Columbus trial on legal sanity. A state psychologist testified Maye understood the wrongfulness of her actions and malingered symptoms as deliberations approach Tuesday.
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https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/judge-warns-juror-nodding-off-184528690.html
Supporting evidence (6)
In opening statements Monday, defense attorney Samuel Shamansky conceded that his client killed the child, acknowledging that 51-year-old Pammy Maye took the life of 5-year-old foster son Darnell Taylor, but told jurors she was not legally responsible because of severe mental illness.
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Pammy Maye, 51, has pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder, tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse in the death of Darnell Taylor, a 5-year-old who was in her custody when he died.Maye admitted to killing the child in interviews with police, and her attorney, Samuel Shamansky, began his opening statement to jurors on Monday by telling them, "I'm here to reiterate, in no uncertain terms, my client, Pammy Maye, took the life of her 5-year-old son." But, Shamansky said, Maye was not legally responsible for her actions because of her severe mental illness: "It's a tragedy of epic proportions."
Shamansky argued that Maye was unable to appreciate the wrongfulness of her act because she was consumed with mental illness.
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"The woman who committed this unspeakable and horrible act was so consumed with mental illness, mental illnesses we can only begin to imagine, she was most certainly unable and ill-equipped to understand how wrong this act was, to appreciate the wrongfulness of her act," Shamansky said.
Prosecutor Katherine Wolfe told the jury in her opening statement that Maye decided to take Darnell's life on Feb. 13, 2024, after becoming upset with the victim for sneaking snacks into his bed.
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Prosecutor Katherine Wolfe told the jury in her opening statement that the events that led to Darnell's death began in the Maye household on Feb. 13, 2024, when the defendant became upset with the victim for "sneaking a granola bar and peanut butter crackers into his bed for a snack." Wolfe said, "It was at that time she decided she was going to take his life."
In police interviews described by Wolfe, Maye said that on Feb. 14, after her husband left for work, she went into Darnell's bedroom and placed a plastic garbage bag over his head before walking out.
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In interviews with police, Maye said that on Feb. 14, after her husband left for work, she sent Darnell back to his bedroom. Then, just after 11 a.m., she went into his room, carrying a black plastic garbage bag. "Pammy Maye slowly pulled the cover off of Darnell's head, replacing it with the plastic bag, hoping he wouldn't notice the transition," Wolfe said. "Putting it over Darnell's head, securing it, and then walking out of the room."
Wolfe said Maye drove Darnell's body through her parents' old neighborhood looking for a sewer for what Maye described as a quick transaction.
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Once her husband fell asleep, Maye retrieved Darnell's body, put it in her car and drove through her parents' old neighborhood looking for a sewer, Wolfe said. "She moved Darnell's body to the front seat of the vehicle," Wolfe said, "because she wanted this to be, in her own words, 'a quick transaction.'"
In the 911 call played for the jury, Jabrell Maye told the dispatcher that his wife confessed to killing their foster child and said she had a plan.
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"She told me she killed our foster child," he said on the 911 call played for the jury on Monday. "She just said, 'I've got a plan,' and that's when I called you and told her, I'm not going to jail for her."
https://www.cleveland19.com/2026/11/09/trial-begins-columbus-woman-accused-killing-5-year-old-boy/
Supporting evidence (5)
Maye is on trial in Franklin County Court of Common Pleas on charges of aggravated murder and related felonies for killing Taylor by suffocating him with a plastic bag in February 2024.
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The jury trial for the Columbus woman accused of killing a five-year-old boy in 2024, is underway in Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Court.
Columbus police issued an AMBER Alert for Taylor after Maye's husband called 911 just after 3 a.m. on Feb. 14, 2024, saying his wife woke him up and said she harmed the child.
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Columbus Police issued an AMBER Alert for Taylor after Maye’s husband called 911 just after 3 a.m. on Feb. 14, 2024 and said his wife woke him up and said she harmed the child.
Brooklyn police arrested Maye around 9:30 p.m. on Feb. 15, 2024, after a business owner reported a woman walking suspiciously around a building.
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Maye was arrested by Brooklyn police around 9:30 p.m. on Feb. 15, 2024 after a business owner reported a woman walking suspiciously around a building.
During an interview with police, Maye told investigators where to find the child, and Columbus officers located Taylor's body in a storm drain just after 1 a.m. on Feb. 16, 2024.
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During an interview with Maye, police said she told them where to find Taylor’s body. Just after 1 a.m. on Feb. 16, 2024, Columbus officers located the body in a storm drain.
Maye was earlier ordered to a psychiatric facility for treatment after being found not competent to stand trial, but in May 2026, she was found competent to stand trial for Taylor's murder.
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In May, Pammy Maye, 51, was found competent to stand trial for the murder of Darnell Taylor.
Supporting evidence (8)
Maye is on trial in Franklin County Court of Common Pleas on charges of aggravated murder and related felonies for killing Taylor by suffocating him with a plastic bag in February 2024.
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A jury heard opening statements and several witnesses testify on day one in the murder trial of Pammy Maye, the woman accused of killing her 5-year-old foster child in Feb. 2024.Maye, 51, is charged with aggravated murder, tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse for killing Darnell Taylor by suffocating him with a plastic bag.
According to trial evidence, Maye washed soiled bedsheets and covered her license plate to conceal the crime.
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She is also accused of taking several steps to conceal the crime, including covering her license plate and washing the sheets of Taylor's bed, where he urinated as he was suffocating.
Forensic psychologist Dr. Daniel Davis, who evaluated Maye, testified Monday that she had a history of bipolar disorder with major depression and suffered from a severe mental disease, but did not have a severe mental defect.
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Davis noted that Pammy Maye had a history of bipolar disorder with major depression and different levels of personality disorder while being questioned by Shamansky on the stand Monday afternoon. He said Pammy Maye didn't suffer from a "severe mental defect," but did suffer from a "severe mental disease."
Despite her diagnosis, Davis found that Maye understood her act was wrongful.
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Despite this, Davis found that Pammy Maye understood the wrongful nature of her act.
On cross-examination, Davis explained that Maye was overreporting symptoms and feigning or fabricating symptoms during her evaluation.
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On cross examination, Davis also explained that Pammy Maye was overreporting symptoms while she was being psychologically evaluated and "malingering," a term that means Pammy Maye was intentionally fabricating symptoms.
Davis also testified that Maye never stated a motivation for killing Taylor that was not grounded in reality, citing reasons such as behavioral issues and Taylor eating in his room.
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Davis said Pammy Maye never stated a motivation for killing Taylor that wasn't grounded in reality. Pammy Maye stated reasons such as behavioral issues and Taylor eating in his room as motivating factors.
Attorneys expect closing arguments to begin Tuesday after the defense rests its case.
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Closing statements are expected to begin on Tuesday after the defense rests its case.
If deliberations extend beyond Tuesday, the trial would continue until Thursday or Friday since the court is closed Wednesday for Veterans Day.
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If the jury doesn't come to a decision on Tuesday, it would mean the trial would continue until Thursday or Friday since the court is closed Wednesday for Veterans Day.
Supporting evidence (5)
Maye was granted temporary custody of Darnell in May 2023 after his grandparents said they were taking care of him but were no longer able to do so.
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In May of 2023, Maye was granted temporary custody of Darnell after his grandparents said they had been taking care of him but were no longer able to do so. Maye was a close friend of the grandparents.
Maye was earlier ordered to a psychiatric facility for treatment after being found not competent to stand trial, but in May 2026, she was found competent to stand trial for Taylor's murder.
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Last year, Maye was found not competent to stand trial and was ordered to a psychiatric facility for treatment.
In July 2026, Maye refused a plea deal that would have sent her to prison for 20 years to life if she pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and abuse of a corpse.
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In July, Maye disrupted a hearing and had to be removed from court after she repeatedly yelled, “God is dead”..At that hearing, Maye refused a plea deal that would have sent her to prison for 20 years to life if she pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and abuse of a corpse. Under the proposed deal, three tampering charges would have been dropped.
Before Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Mark Serrott, 15 jurors were selected to hear the case with three designated as alternates.
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Before jury selection Thursday, Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Mark Serrott reminded Maye not to interrupt the hearing.
Before Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Mark Serrott, 15 jurors were selected to hear the case with three designated as alternates.
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with 15 jurors selected to hear the case and three jurors will be notified they are alternates when deliberations begin.