A northeast Kansas woman accused in the abuse death of her boyfriend’s 4-year-old son will have more time to prepare for trial.
KNZA-FM reports 28-year-old Janice Summerford, of Hiawatha, had been scheduled to go on trial April on charges including first-degree murder and child abuse.
But a Brown County judge has rescheduled the trial to Sept. 29. The defense requested the continuance to allow time for an expert in women’s abuse issues to examine Summerford.
Summerford was initially charged with aiding and abetting the March 2013 death of Mekhi Boone. The charge was amended in September to first-degree murder, after investigators said she had been the child’s primary caregiver.
The boy’s father, Lee Davis IV, was convicted earlier of second-degree murder and sentenced to nearly 20 years in prison.
