Erica Lawson court appearance continued to January 2024 in Murder case.
Updated: Nov 21
From WRIL - The Big One -
An appearance of Erica Lawson in Bell County Circuit Court today for a pretrial hearing was rescheduled at the request of her lawyers.
Attorneys representing Lawson, charged with the intentional death of her daughter - 17-month-old Elena, were asking the court for more time in researching the case and reviewing DNA evidence.
Judge Tom Jones set the next hearing for January 29th, 2024 at 1:30pm.
DNA evidence testing regarding those who may have contributed to the child's abuse, leading to her death, has yet to return. Middlesboro Police released a statement a short time after the July 28, 2023 incident, informing the public that DNA testing is being conducted by two separate laboratories from samples donated by multiple individuals.
Erica Lawson was formally charged with murder - aggravated circumstances, failure to report child neglect or abuse - 1st offense, criminal abuse - 1st degree - child 12 or under, and wanton endangerment - 1st degree.
Multiple continuances should be expected in case of this magnitude.