Opening statements are expected to begin Wednesday in the trial of a Stockton Springs mother accused of killing 3-year-old son.
Jessica Trefethen, formerly known as Jessica Williams, is accused of killing Maddox Williams in June 2021.
Authorities say her son, Maddox, suffered severe injuries while in her care last year at their Stockton Springs home. He died at a local hospital.
Maine State Police say Maddox Williams died in June 2021after his mom and grandmother brought him to Waldo General Hospital. Maddox was unable to breathe when his mother sought medical help at the emergency room in late June.
According to court records, Maddox’s mother told hospital staff the boy had been knocked down by a dog leash and kicked by his 8-year-old sister, but the Medical Examiner’s Office found his injuries were not consistent with that and ruled the death a homicide.
The medical examiner said Maddox suffered multiple blunt force traumas, including bruises all over his body, a fractured spine, bleeding in his brain and abdomen, and three teeth that had been knocked out.
As authorities were arresting Trefethen, she reportedly said, “Let’s do this.”
In 2021, the Maine Department of Health and Human Services announced the need for a call of action following four child deaths within a month.
Maddox had been in his paternal grandmother’s care, but DHHS returned the child to Trefethen before he was killed.
State Senator Bill Diamond says the Government Oversight Committee has requested case files for the 2021 child deaths, but the request was denied.
“The system is not working. The system is failing within the Department of Human Health Services. Until we can fix that, until we can see inside and see what went wrong it's going to continue,” Diamond said.
Jury selection in the trial was completed on Tuesday.