Louisiana mother who asked girlfriend to burn infant son to death will be executed if found guilty
NATCHITOCHES, LOUISIANA: Prosecutors have announced their intention to seek the death penalty for a Louisiana mother who is accused of instructing her girlfriend to douse her infant son in gasoline and burn him to death.
We previously reported that Hanna Nicole Barker, 23, and her girlfriend Felicia Marie-Nicole Smith, 27, were arrested last year in connection to the death of the former's six-month-old son Levi Ellerbe, who had been burned alive.
On the evening of July 17, 2018, Barker called 911 and complained to an operator that Levi had been kidnapped by two people who knocked on the door of her home in Natchitoches, pepper-sprayed her eyes, and then ran off with her son.
But within 90 minutes of that call, officers from the Natchitoches Police Department had responded to reports of a fire at a nearby railway.
When they arrived at the scene at a railroad off Breda Avenue, they found Levi in a critical condition. He was rushed to the Christus Natchitoches Regional Medical Center suffering second-degree and third-degree burns to over 90% of his body. Unfortunately, he succumbed to his extensive injuries.
Smith was arrested on July 21, four days after Levi's death, and charged with first-degree murder.
A few days later, on July 25, Barker was arrested and charged with principal to first-degree murder in the death of her son.
Investigators said it was Smith who took Levi to the railroad at Barker's request, poured gasoline on him, and then set him alight.
They said, after setting the infant on fire, Smith then went to work her shift at a nearby IHOP restaurant.
During a preliminary examination hearing in September of 2018, a Fire Marshall explained to a judge that the accused pair was in a romantic relationship.
However, it was reportedly Smith who was supposedly more interested in pursuing the tryst, with Barker apparently telling officials she was only with the 27-year-old for attention and money.
Last week, the State of Louisiana announced that they will seek the death penalty for Barker, who is said to have admitted to instructing Smith to kill her son.
Barker's attorneys have argued that the allegation on their client is false and that there is no way for the prosecution to prove it.
The date for her trial has been tentatively set for January 13, 2020.
Smith will have her preliminary hearing, which will determine if there is enough evidence to proceed with the case, on August 23.
Prosecutors will likely seek the death penalty for her as well.