VA - Codi Bigsby, 4, *Dad named POI* Hampton, 31 Jan 2022 - MEDIA, MAPS & TIMELINES *NO DISCUSSION*

[PommyMommy]

JUL 30, 2023

'A Ride For Justice' | Hundreds of motorcyclists rally for missing Codi Bigsby​

[...]

On Sunday, hundreds gathered for "A Ride For Justice" in honor of Codi. Nancy Strickland, founder of "We Are Codi's Voice," organized the ride, rallying hundreds of motorcyclists to travel from Williamsburg to Hampton.

Once in Hampton, the group stopped at Buckroe Pointe Apartments, where a memorial of Codi has been since he was first reported missing.

“...I’m not the only one that loves him," Strickland said among the hundreds of motorcyclists. “We have people from Florida. We have people from D.C. We have people from South Carolina. They’re everywhere to come out and show the love for this baby.”

The ride attracted bikers from all over. Cash traveled all the way from Atlanta to join.

“When I heard about it, I was just like, ‘I got to be a part of it.’ You know, I got to,” Cash said.

[...]

 

[PommyMommy]

 

[PommyMommy]

SEP 19, 2023

Cory Bigsby trial set for Nov. 6​

 

[PommyMommy]

OCT 6, 2023

Statement by father in 4-year-old boy’s presumed death came in exchange for meeting with family, lawyer says​

An attorney for Cory Jamar Bigsby is contending that officials at the Hampton Roads Regional Jail promised Bigsby a visit with his family if he agreed to provide the statement that’s now being used to prosecute him in his son’s disappearance.

That statement must be tossed from the pending murder case as being improperly obtained, lawyer Amina Matheny-Willard asserts in a motion filed Friday.

[...]

Matheny-Willard filed a motion to suppress the statement, saying her client was largely kept in isolation and wrote the Aug. 3, 2022, statement only after a promise that he would be allowed to see his family for a lunchtime visit two days later.

[...]

“It appears that the representatives of the jail told (Bigsby) that he would need to write a statement,” it contends. “The representatives at the jail then asked him what he wanted in exchange for a statement. Mr. Bigsby’s response was likely that he wanted to see his family.”

Bigsby wrote the statement Aug. 3, two days before the family’s jailhouse visit. The Hardee’s luncheon was “seemingly … a tit-for-tat so that he would give his captors what they wanted,” the motion contends.

 

[PommyMommy]

OCT 10, 2023

Cory Bigsby's defense attorney files motion to throw out statement he allegedly wrote in jail​

[...]

In court documents, Matheny-Willard said jail leaders contacted her on July 24, 2022, expressing concern for Bigsby’s mental health. She said they wanted to arrange a Hardee’s luncheon.

Then, on or around August 3, she said Bigsby wrote a statement, and two days later jail staff allowed his family in for a lunchtime visit.

In the paperwork, Matheny-Willard writes there is a body camera video showing a deputy taking a pen and paper to Bigsby. But she said there is no evidence of what happened before that recording.

[...]

Bigsby remains out of jail on bond.

A judge will hear the defense’s motion to suppress Bigsby’s statement on October 31. The murder trial is set for November 6.

 

[PommyMommy]

OCT 16, 2023

Pretrial motions give glimpse into Bigsby defense​

Cory Bigsby was coerced into falsely admitting he killed his own son in exchange for being able to eat lunch with his family — after being subjected to treatment that amounts to torture, his attorney argues in paperwork filed earlier this month in Hampton Circuit Court.

[...]

“[T]hese statements were obtained in violation of Mr. Bigsby’s Fourth (4th), Fifth (5th), Sixth (6th), and Fourteenth (14th) Amendments to the United States Constitution and Article 1 Section 10 of the Constitution of Virginia…” it reads.

Matheny-Willard also alleges that Bigsby told investigators he was tired and wanted to end the questioning more than 20 times.

According to the document, Bigsby was read his Miranda rights while in Hampton Police Headquarters just after 2:30 p.m. Jan. 1. The last interview concluded around 4:45 a.m. the following morning.

[...]

The trial is set to begin Nov. 6, with a pretrial hearing on Oct. 31.

 

[PommyMommy]

OCT 30, 2023
Cory Bigsby's defense team files motion ahead of trial, asking judge to strike prosecution's witnesses.

In a newly filed motion in Hampton Circuit Court, his attorney, Amina Matheny-Willard, said the Hampton Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office didn’t give them a witness list on time.
Because of that, Matheny-Willard said Judge James Hawks shouldn't allow the prosecution's witnesses on the stand.

During the pre-trial process, she said her team signed the Commonwealth’s order, which said prosecutors had to disclose witnesses no later than 10 business days before the trial.
In the paperwork, Matheny-Willard said she turned in her witness list on October 16, but the Commonwealth did not submit theirs until October 24. She said the Commonwealth’s list is a day past due.

 

[PommyMommy]

OCT 30, 2023
Murder trial for Cory Bigsby postponed, defense says more time needed to prepare
[...]

The delay happened during a Tuesday morning pre-trial hearing for Bigsby, who is facing charges of murder and concealment of a body in the death of son Codi, who was reported missing in January 2022.

The trial was originally set to begin November 6, but Bigsby's defense attorney, Amina Matheny-Willard, said she hasn't completed a review of the prosecution's discovery in this case.

In the paperwork filed for the continuance, Matheny-Willard said her team could need until December to complete the review process. That includes inspecting evidence at the Hampton Police Division. She said they want to have a jury trial the last week of February 2024 or the first week of March.

While Hampton Circuit Court Judge James Hawks agreed to move the trial, he said he didn't know why Bigsby's defense didn't complete their review, despite having "ample time to do so." Hampton Commonwealth’s Attorney Anton Bell told Hawks he wasn't informed the defense would ask to move the trial.

[...]

 

[PommyMommy]

OCT 31, 2023

High profile murder trial in Hampton delayed, defense needs more time to prepare​

[...]

The trial date is delayed, as Willard has proposed a late February to early March trial date.

... She was allowed to escort her client to a bank Tuesday to take care of financial matters, and her motion to suppress evidence, as she is challenging mental competency, will be heard next week.

Matheny-Willard this afternoon issued a statement to 10 On Your Side, saying in next weeks hearing she will object to a prosecutor’s plan to allow a child to testify via closed circuit television. This objection raises questions about whether the victim’s siblings can shed light on what happened to their baby brother. She said the prosecution’s video plan poses due process issue under the 14th amendment.

“[The Defense] is objecting because it gives the jury the impression that my client should be feared, which is not true and it interferes with his presumption of innocence,” she said. “Additionally, it is a violation of his Constitutional Right to confront and cross-examine the witness against him.

[...]

 

[PommyMommy]

NOV 5, updated NOV 6, 2023

Cory Bigsby’s attorney files motion against closed circuit testimony in case​

[...]

With the possibility of the victim’s siblings testifying, the defense argues that Bigsby’s other son shouldn’t be allowed to testify in a separate room, arguing that it violates the 6th Amendment to “confront” your witnesses.

The motion also states that The Commonwealth falsely describes the son testifying as the “complaining-witness.” The defense argues that the son is capable of in-person testimony, and cross-examination won’t be effective unless he has to “face his father” and “look him in the eyes” while testifying.

They also argued that a closed-circuit testimony would make Bigsby look guilty, violating the 14th Amendment of the “presumption of innocence.”

“The jury will reason: ‘If D.B. is in fear of Mr. Bigsby and if D.B. MUST be protected by the Court, in this manner, then Mr. Bigsby MUST be guilty of killing D.B’s brother,’” their motion reads.

[...]

 

[PommyMommy]

NOV 8, 2023

Confessions: Cory Bigsby says he found son Codi unresponsive, buried him

Cory Bigsby - the father accused of killing his son Codi Bigsby, according to police - is in court today after his attorney filed a motion to throw out a confession statement he wrote

www.wtkr.com

FULL ALLEGED CONFESSIONS DOCUMENTS CAN BE READ IN THE LINK BELOW. READER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

Documents: Alleged Confession of Cory Bigsby in death of son Codi Bigsby​

 

[PommyMommy]

NOV 8, 2023

Confessions: Cory Bigsby says he found son Codi unresponsive, buried him

Cory Bigsby - the father accused of killing his son Codi Bigsby, according to police - is in court today after his attorney filed a motion to throw out a confession statement he wrote

www.wtkr.com

[...]

"I stepped outside of my apartment to get some items out of my car to wash clothes. When I got inside, I saw my son laying on the ground unresponsive. I tried to revive him, but he couldn't breathe. I stepped outside and prayed. I then put him in a trash bag and left him in the car for three days."

The letter stated he then drove his son's body to Garriot Morgan Blvd. — a quick search on Google Maps shows that's in Maryland. The statement states this is where Cory Bigsby buried Codi Bigsby and then grabbed something to eat.

[...]

... A judge granted permission for Cory’s 6-year-old son to provide testimony during the murder trial. The judge said instead of appearing in the courtroom, the son will testify in a separate room. The son's testimony will discuss the relationship between Cory and Codi.

[...]

The murder trial will take place from March 4 - 8 of next year.

 

[PommyMommy]

NOV 8, 2023

Judge rules Cory Bigsby’s statements can be used in trial

Cory Bigsby, the man accused of killing his 4-year-old son Codi, confessed to burying his son’s body after finding him unresponsive, Hampton Roads Regional Jail officers testified in court on…

www.wavy.com

[...]

The first HRRJ officer testified during Wednesday’s hearing that Bigsby asked him to write a confession letter around 1:30a.m. August 3rd, 2022.

The letter writes: “Found my son unresponsive tried to [give] CPR, could not revive him. Tried several times. I beg God to save him. I decided to walk outside and spoke with God. Back to house, check on my son to see if he was breathing and tried along [time] to realize he was not coming back. I put [him in a] trash bag put [him] in [my] car [which] sat for 3 days.”

The letter adds a location where Bigsby buried his son in Maryland. The officer testified he asked Bigsby to sign the letter then called his supervisor.

[...]

The same day, the nightshift supervisor said the officer was distraught and crying. ... On the stand, the supervisor said she turned on her body camera. Then asked to open Bigsby’s cell, where she asked him to write his own confession.

In this letter, Bigsby allegedly writes: “I Cory J. Bigsby SR., am confessing that on January 30th, 2022 stepped outside of my apartment… to get some items out of my car to wash clothes and when I returned, I found my son Codi Josiah Bigsby laying at the bottom of the steps unresponsive. He must have fallen. I then tried to revive him by administering CPR several times over and over until I couldn’t anymore. Then I prayed. I step[ped] outside for a few minutes and talked to God as I prayed, I asked God to allow my son a second chance. Then I administered CPR again but got [no] response so I panicked [sp.] and prayed. After that I placed him into a trash bag, and I placed him into the back of my truck. On the 21st of January around 3:30am I took him to Garrett A. Morgan Blvd and placed him into a resptacle [sp.] bend. After I realized it was a trash can took him out and put him into a hole I dug beside a tree inside the treeline. He has tape around his ankles and wrist, a cowboy rug under him, beats headphones in his ears. I then ate and placed his bike and some trash after I ate, at the scene.”

[...]

A third HRRJ officer took the stand, described writings found in Bigsby’s cell around December 2022, which outlines a much different picture.

A notebook page said “on 18 June 2021” Cory beat his son Codi until he went into cardiac arrest. Then Cory allegedly writes some very disturbing things with Codi’s body before burying him.

[...]

On Thursday, the Judge will issue a final ruling on if the jail confessions will be allowed during the trial.

 

[PommyMommy]

NOV 8, 2023

Statements in court allegedly reveal how Cory Bigsby killed, disposed body of 4-year-old son

A Hampton Roads Regional Jail officer claimed Bigsby admitted to disposing his 4-year-old son Codi's body.

www.13newsnow.com

[...]

A third officer testified they found a letter in Bigsby’s jail cell in his notebook where Bigsby allegedly admitted to killing Codi. The officer said Bigsby wrote he hit Codi’s head on the floor, hit him with his fists, put him in the fridge, and buried him. The letter said it happened on June 18, 2021, a few months before he reported Codi missing.

[...]

Judge James Hawks said he will give the defense team an hour on Thursday morning to wrap up their evidence. Then, he will decide whether the prosecution can use the evidence at trial.

[...]

 

[PommyMommy]

NOV 8, 2023

In jailhouse statement, Cory Bigsby wrote he beat toddler son to death, buried body

Cory Bigsby wrote in a jailhouse statement last year that he beat his then 3-year-old son “with his fist” in June 2021 until the boy was unresponsive.

www.pilotonline.com

[...]

Unlike the other three statements, Bigsby didn’t willingly hand over that statement or dictate the words to a jail guard. Instead, guards found it — in a black and white composition notebook — in the inmate’s jail cell in December 2022.

[...]

“On June 18, 2021, I, Cory Bigsby walked in the room and grabbed Codi and drag him into the kitchen,” he wrote. Then, Bigsby said, he “thumped his head on the floor and beat him with my fist and he went into cardiac arrest.”

After the CPR didn’t work, he wrote, he carried Codi upstairs and put him into the bathtub “to see if he would respond.”

“He did not, so I held him and prayed to God that he bring my baby back,” Bigsby wrote. “Then I took him the room and layed him (sic) on the bed.”

After that, Bigsby said he got a flashlight and charged it, bought gas and snacks at a gas station.

Bigsby wrote that he went to an empty car wash and put Codi into a bag, then drove home and put him “in the fridge.” Then he put Codi back in the car, he said, drove him to a building and dug a hole by a tree and buried him.

“Then went home and prayed for forgiveness,” Bigsby wrote. He went to King’s Dominion the next day, he added, and later “dumped my clothes from the crime in the trash and burned them.”

“Then the next day I went back to burn Codi and cover up scars from the beatings,” he said. (The statement doesn’t explain how he would have been able to access Codi again, given that he just wrote that the boy had been buried).

“Then I went home and took a bath with (another child),” he wrote. “Please except (sic) my confession! Sincerely Cory Bigsby.”

[...]

 

[PommyMommy]

Article updated Nov 9

Cory Bigsby confessed to burying son’s body, jail officers testify

Cory Bigsby, the man accused of killing his 4-year-old son Codi, confessed to burying his son’s body after finding him unresponsive, Hampton Roads Regional Jail officers testified in court on…

myfox8.com

The judge ruled Wednesday that another one of Bigsby’s children, a 6-year-old, can testify via video at trial.

The judge said the child will “suffer severe emotional trauma if he must testify in the court room with his father.” This decision was made after hearing from a child trauma expert with Transitions Family Violence services, a domestic violence shelter in Hampton. The 6-year-old met with the specialist in October 2023, when the child expressed “scared, worried and overwhelmed” feelings to the counselor. The defense requested a motion to have the child testify in person in front of his father and the court.

Another revelation in court — the child and his siblings are now living with their mother.

 

[tlcya]

A judge denied a motion to suppress confessions made by Cory Bigsby — the man accused of killing his 4-year-old son Codi.
[snip]
“We knew the law was on our side, and it was frivolous motion and the court has ruled it accordingly and we are happy about it and we are ready to try the case,” said Commonwealth's attorney Anton Bell.
[snip]
Additionally, a judge granted the defense's request for all the body camera footage from the day Codi was reported missing when officers responded to Cory Bigsby’s apartment. The prosecution has seven days to get it to Bigsby's legal team.
Judge will allow use of confessions Cory Bigsby made about his son Codi's disappearance

 

[PommyMommy]

JAN 12, 2024

Tribute for missing Hampton boy Codi Bigsby to be taken down​

A tribute for a missing Hampton boy will be coming down, nearly two years after the child's disappearance.

*****
Now on what would be his sixth birthday, a notice hangs on the fence, saying all items will be removed by February 5, 2024.

*****
"Now that an arrest has been made and the case is in court, the City decided it is appropriate [to] enforce the rules and remove the objects," Holtzclaw said in a statement. "Notice was posted on January 2, 2024, that any remaining items will be removed on February 5, 2024, to give people time to remove any items they want to keep."

 

[PommyMommy]

JAN 18, 2024

Lawmakers propose new missing child alert in memory of Codi Bigsby​

[...]

The Codi Alert stands for Critical Operation for a Disappeared Child Initiative Alert.

[...]

“Codi didn’t even qualify at the time when he went missing for an Amber Alert, so most people didn’t know this child was missing,” Hampton Del. A.C. Cordoza said.

Cordoza is working to make sure Codi Bigsby’s story is never repeated with a new alert system after Codi went missing.

“It’s going to go off in two areas. It’s going to go off at the residence of the child and also their last known location. It operates by radius, so it’s a certain amount of radius per amount of time that goes past,” Cordoza said.

[...]

 

[PommyMommy]

JAN 25, 2023

‘CODI Alert’ hopes to fill gaps left by Amber alert system: Hampton Del. Cordoza

HAMPTON, Va. (WAVY) — There are nearly 500 missing children in Virginia. Not all are covered under the Amber Alert—as we saw with Codi Bigsby, the four-year-old who was never found after being repo…

www.wavy.com

[...]

“This one can pretty much cover every missing child but runaways. It doesn’t necessarily only speak of ‘we’ve seen someone snatch a child,’” Cordoza said.

A CODI Alert also would allow law enforcement to trigger the alert right away—popping up on phones in a 10 mile radius of where the child lives and where they were last seen. Plus, every 10 minutes after that, the alert would be updated to include to a larger radius, making the alert, Cordoza said, much more effective.

“That’s the whole thing, we’re trying to save some children’s lives, get them back home with their families, make sure everyone goes home every day,” Cordoza said.

State Sen. Danny Diggs introduced this same bill in the Senate, where it has passed 40-0. Cordoza hopes the delegation can pass it soon. It could be law as soon as July 1.

[...]