Court proceedings against a Carter County man charged with murder in the death of his 3-year-old stepson have been delayed as the court awaits a report from the child’s autopsy.
Demetrius Deshawn Covington, 28, of Elizabethton, was scheduled to appear in Carter County General Sessions Court today for a preliminary hearing on the charges of first degree murder and aggravated child neglect. That hearing was been rescheduled by order of Judge Keith Bowers Jr.
“Upon joint motion of parties, and it appearing that the autopsy report in the above-styled case is not complete; It is hereby ordered that the preliminary hearing in these matters previously scheduled for January 13, 2017, is continued until March 10, 2017 at 9 a.m.,” the order signed by Bowers states.
Both Assistant District Attorney Mark Hill and Assistant Public Defender Melanie Sellers, who represents Covington, also signed the order.
The charges against Covington stem from an investigation by the Elizabethton Police Department that began on Nov. 18 when Ayonjaleea Phillips called 911 to report her son, Ja’Kari Phillips, was having difficulty breathing. While driving her son to the hospital, the child’s condition worsened so the Phillips pulled over and began performing CPR. The Carter County Rescue Squad was dispatched to the scene and transported the child for treatment. The child was taken first to Sycamore Shoals Hospital and then later to Niswonger Children’s Hospital where he was placed on life support. The child died at the hospital on Nov. 22 as a result of his injuries, which according to court documents were considered to be “non-accidental trauma and were not self-inflicted.”
According to court documents, the child suffered numerous bruises over his face, neck, torso, back, bottom, legs and foot. Court documents also state medical tests revealed the child had internal injuries, including swelling in his brain and a subdural hematoma, which is a collection of blood outside of the brain usually caused by severe head injuries.
Phillips told investigators she had left her son in Covington’s care while she was at work. According to police she said Covington called her at work and asked her to come home, saying the child may have fallen in the bathtub.
According to police, Covington fled the area before officers or investigators could speak with him regarding the child’s injuries. On Nov. 21, the Elizabethton Police Department requested the public’s help in locating Covington, which led to a multi-state search involving the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Marshals Service. On Nov. 23 Covington was captured in Dayton, Ohio, by local authorities there with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force.
Covington was later returned to Carter County to face charges and was booked into the Carter County Detention center on Dec. 2. Covington remains held at the jail without bond after Bowers denied a request from the Public Defender’s Office to set bail in the case.