Friday, November 18th:
*Hearing (@ am session ET) - NC - Paitin Renee Fields (5) (reported missing Sunday night Nov. 12, 2017 at home on Blackwater Drive in Willard. But found next morning, Nov. 13, 2017, unresponsive in her own bedroom by her 19 yr. old uncle; she had been strangled & raped & died at the New Hanover Regional Medical Center on Nov. 16, 2017; she lived with her maternal grandmother) - *David Wesley Prevatte (19 @ time of crime/23/now 24) uncle arrested & charged (2/4/22) with 1st degree murder, 1st degree statutory rape & 1st degree statutory sex offense with child by adult in the case. Prevatte was taken into custody in by the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office in Louisiana & is awaiting extradition. Was extradited 2/15/22 to NC. Held without bond. State will seek the DP.
About case as of 3/22/19: On Nov. 13, 2017, Paitin was taken to Pender Memorial Hospital with complaints of seizure & an altered mental status, according to an autopsy report from the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Raleigh, released last year. Her family members reportedly told medical staff that the child had been sick for two days with respiratory problems. According to the Medical Examiner's report, an ER nurse found “ligature marks on her neck, consistent with strangulation” & sent Paitin to the New Hanover Regional Medical Center for evaluation. At NHRMC, doctors also found evidence that Paitin had been sexually assaulted, the autopsy report stated. The child died at the hospital on Nov. 16, 2017 & the Pender County Sheriff's Office opened a homicide investigation.
Paitin was at her maternal grandma's house. Her step grandfather & uncle were also in the house. She was found in the bedroom. Paitin was a member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina. Father: Robert A. Fields is a member of the Lumbee Tribe of NC. Mother: Lora Elizabeth Flowers. Maternal grandparents: Dale & Lisa Hunt. Paternal grandparents, Buddy & Jan Fields. Maternal uncle: David Wesley Prevatte (19) was suspect in June, 2018.
According to a news release from the Pender County Sheriff's Office, medical staff at Pender Memorial Hospital contacted the sheriff's office at 6am last Monday, 11/13/17 regarding a female child in the emergency room. She was in critical condition with injuries consistent with an assault. Police records show the girl was strangled & raped. She died as a result of those injuries on Wednesday, 11/16/17."
2/15/22 Update: Prevatte was extradited from Louisiana to North Carolina. First appearance on 2/16/22. 2/16/22 Update: No details of the case were discussed in court Thursday morning, but the judge decided Prevatte will be held without bond. The Pender County Sheriff himself held Prevatte as he walked out in chains, wearing his orange striped jail jumpsuit to appear before Judge Jeffrey Noecker. Prevatte said, “Yes sir” when asked if he understood the eight felony charges he faces, including first-degree statutory rape, first-degree statutory sex offense with child & first degree murder. He faces a maximum penalty of death, or life without parole for the murder charge. Investigators couldn’t discuss any specifics of the case Thursday or talk about what led to Prevatte’s arrest so many years later. The files in the murder case remain sealed & they’re expected to remain out of the public eye until the case goes to trial. Former Robeson County DA Johnson Britt spoke in Prevatte’s defense Thursday, but Prevatte did request a court appointed attorney in the event that he couldn’t retain Britt. Prevatte’s next court date is set for 3/16/22.
3/16/22 Update: In early April, the state filed a notice in Pender County Superior Court notifying Prevatte & his counsel that it would proceed capitally in the case. According to the district attorney's office, this means Prevatte could face the death penalty if convicted of murder. On April 25, Prevatte's attorney submitted a motion requesting a change in venue to move the impending trial from Pender County, claiming prejudice against Prevatte in Pender & other nearby counties would prevent him from receiving a fair & impartial trial. Next hearing on 11/18/22.
www.nielsen-legal.com
Jamey Cross
