A three-year-old girl who witnessed the terrible murder of a pregnant woman in front of her was a crucial witness in the case that led to the conviction of the murderer.
On Friday, a 20/20 segment will focus on the tragedy surrounding Lyntell Washington‘s death and the upsetting events that followed.
In 2016, Washington, a teacher from Baton Rouge, was murdered by her boyfriend before he abandoned her daughter in a parking lot in Louisiana.
A bystander discovered the toddler near a car that had blood all over it and it had blood on its feet.
The relationship between Washington, 40, and Robert Marks, the assistant principal at Brookstown Middle Magnet Academy where she worked, was later revealed to be a secret one.
Deborah Roberts of ABC was informed by friends of Washington that she was yearning for love but “did not have much luck with males.”
According to Jamicia Pink-Fisher, a different Brookstown assistant principal, when Washington found out she was pregnant, she warned Marks that he needed to notify his wife or else she would.
The daughter was questioned by authorities and assisted in solving the murder when Washington’s case began to come together.
The youngster was found in the parking lot by Leslie Parms.
She explained to him that “Mr Robbie,” the daughter’s pet name for Marks according to Washington’s acquaintances, had abandoned her there.
When authorities questioned the youngster about who spilt the blood on Washington’s dashboard, she pointed once more at “Mr Robbie.”
When asked if she saw Mr. Robbie harm Mommy, the daughter said she heard a “boom” and said “yes” before confirming these facts during a child forensic investigation.
“You hear the little girl in her own voice saying, ‘Mr. Robbie put the blood in my car. I heard a bang. My mama started shaking. My mama’s asleep by a lake,'” Chuck Smith, an investigator with the East Baton Rouge District Attorney’s Office, told 20/20.
A week after her kid was abandoned in the parking lot, Washington was discovered dead in a ditch in a sugar cane irrigation field.
According to Iberville Parish District Attorney Tony Clayton, she suffered a gunshot wound to the head.
Washington’s friend Melissa Mason claims that her pal informed her that Marks was divorcing his wife even though they were still residing in the same home.
When Washington learned that Marks was travelling with his wife, she became enraged and sent him a text asking if he would stand up for her and her pregnant child.
When questioned by authorities, Marks allegedly admitted to the relationship.
Tramica Jackson, a third woman the suspect was seeing, informed police that Marks had requested her to pick him up near the scene of Washington’s child’s discovery.
Investigators claimed that she had no involvement in the crime.
Police were informed that the body had been discovered by workers by the field’s owner, according to a preview for the episode.
Police arrived at the area right away after suspecting it was Washington.
Officers were able to find a sandal in her car that matched the one she was wearing when she was found, and the clothes she was wearing matched the surveillance footage of Washington in her classroom on the day she vanished.
“I remember I just dropped to the floor, and then my husband caught me,” Mason said of when she learned of the discovery.
“I just couldn’t process she was found dead.”
The testimony of the child was played for the jury at Marks’ trial.
“She was telling it. I don’t think he expected that at all,” a juror told 20/20, noting he was “moved” by the video.
The child is now nine years old and lives with her father, Darren Glasper, who said he sees “a lot” of Washington in her.
“I see that she’s smart, educated. She’s focused when she puts her mind to stuff,” Glasper said.
During the trial, Marks’ defence attorney claimed that the evidence was circumstantial but he did not present any witnesses or a closing argument.
In December 2021, following a half-hour of deliberations, a jury found Marks guilty.
He was given a life without parole term earlier this year.
Washington is remembered as a devoted teacher, adoring mother, and dependable friend by her friends, family, and pupils.
“She was loyal, dedicated, and hard-working,” Pink-Fisher said.
“Her name was important to her.
“She didn’t want anything attached to her name that was negative, that was bad. And she wanted to be a great mother.”
“She was a really good teacher,” a former student told 20/20.