2 year old Aveion Lewis reported kidnapped; Brandon Lockett killed him [Archive]

Whisper

January 19th, 2010, 12:00 AM

UPDATE JAN 18 2010
Tonight, the desperate search for an adorable 2-year- old toddler. Police in Roanoke, Virginia, have issued an Amber Alert for little Aveion Lewis. Cops along with the FBI desperately hunting for any sign of this adorable, precious child.

Aveion, 2 1/2 feet tall. He weighs only 26 pounds. He was last seen wearing his yellow Spongebob Squarepants footy pajamas.

The boy`s stepfather says three men broke into the family`s home and abducted the toddler last Thursday at about 5 p.m. He says the thugs hit him over the head, knocked him unconscious. The step-dad says when he woke up, he found his 4-year-old daughter bound and gagged and his little stepson missing.
The family says Aveion`s abductor also left behind a bizarre ransom note demanding $10,000. More on that in a moment.

Here is the step-dad talking to HLN affiliate WDBJ. BRANDON LOCKETT,
STEPFATHER OF ABDUCTED TODDLER: I heard a knock at the door, I went to the back door and all I remember was boom. That`s all I remember. When I came -- when I came to, my wife was standing over me, and my son was crying, and my daughter, she was gagged, up stairs in her room, and that`s all I remember.
Little Aveion has a health problem, because he was born prematurely. The stepfather says he needs to be kept warm. So if these mystery men have this child, the clock is ticking.MICHELLE SIGONA, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER:
The very latest, Jane, is about 150 leads have come in so far on this case. The FBI has about 20 agents at various points teaming up with the local authorities in Roanoke to field out leads.

And they`re doing something interesting. They`re passing out questionnaires to all residents within the neighborhood, asking them specific questions about anything that they saw that day, anything specific about the neighborhood. And in addition, they`re asking for consent to be able to go inside of these homes and to possible search for clues and to see if there`s anything else.

I can confirm that investigators do have surveillance video, that they are looking through. I personally called the food line in the area. They do not have any outside external cameras, but the gas station down the street may have some -- may have some surveillance that police are looking into, along with a few other businesses in the area at this time.

When we do know is Aveion is still missing. His 4-year-old daughter [SIC] is OK. There were two other children home at the time. And the stepfather is now, as we you -- as we just saw, speaking out. And he also has said that he has the $10,000 and that they just want their son back. VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. He says he was knocked unconscious. Does he have any injuries? Did the step-dad go to the hospital?

SIGONA: At this time what many people who have seen him in person say that his lip was split and that he does have bruises on his face. So it does appear that he was attacked. CHRIS WADE, UNCLE OF ABDUCTED TODDLER:
The other side of the note it had my sister`s name circled, and it was like "It`s nothing personal; it`s just business. We`ll contact you."

I find it hard to believe they came here, tied my niece up, grabbed my nephew and still had time to write a note with two different handwritings on there and get out without nobody seeing them.
This case has some interesting parallels to the famous JonBenet Ramsey case. You may remember there a ransom note demanding $118,000 from her parents, John and Kathy, that was found inside the home. It was allegedly written on lined notepaper taken from a pad inside the house. JOHN LUCICH, FORMER CRIMINAL INVESTIGATOR:
Most cases that I`ve seen, they go there to the scene of the crime with that note already done. They`re not going to waste any time. If they`re going to come in, grab that kid and try and get out, they`re not going to take time to sit down, look for a piece of paper, find a pen and actually sit there and write that. That is the biggest suspicious part of this whole case right there.
VELEZ-MITCHELL:
Judge David Young, I don`t understand. If somebody demands a ransom, don`t they also have to tell you where you can put that ransom? "Hey, leave it here, or I`m going to call you at such-and-such a time and tell you where to leave it." I mean, there`s none of that, it would appear. I don`t know. I haven`t seen the ransom note.
YOUNG: It`s very suspicious.
There`s something rotten in Denmark.
You know, it`s very interesting, because Robi Ludwig, the stepfather says that the 4-year-old child was tied up. Now, this little boy`s missing. Is the 4-year-old going to be the key to this case? Is she going to be able to say, "Well, yes, I was tied up" or "I wasn`t tied up," and yes, "who exactly tied me up"?
is that you have to think this crime happened in the early afternoon hours. Nine-one-one was called at 6:41 p.m. by someone inside of the residence. Investigators will not say who, but it`s possibly believed to be the child`s mother. And so if anyone saw anything -- this neighborhood does have a lot of houses. They could have possibly seen these three suspects. LOCKETT:
He has malrotation, meaning he can eat, but -- he can eat, but his body won`t absorb the fats that it needs, so it doesn`t have the enzymes that it needs. So I mean, he has medical problems. I mean, if you`ve got him, make sure you keep him warm
Should they subject the stepfather to a polygraph, and so we can be done with the questions about him and move on?
.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Robi, what do you make -- what do you make of his -- the hat and the looking down?

LUDWIG: There is something about the stepfather`s demeanor that doesn`t ring true. There`s a flatness in his voice. He doesn`t seem to be panicked. It seems like he`s rehearsed some of what he`s saying in his mind.
Roanoke, Virginia, Police Department issued a press release with descriptions of Aveion`s abductors and a possible vehicle. This is as provided by the boy`s family.

They are three black males, one named Tony. Tony, late 20`s, 6`2" with a stocky build, wearing a black puffy jacket and du rag. Second suspect, 20s, 5`11", dreds, red baseball cap, muscular upper body. Third man, 23 or 24, 5`11", wearing a brown and white hat, clean shaven. Cops say the men might be in a 1990s white Chevy Blazer.

This is a lot of detail, John Lucich. So that`s what police are looking for right now, based on the family`s descriptions. What do you make of the detailed nature of these descriptions?
Judge David Young, what I don`t understand is why this child, this -- that family does not appear to be wealthy. I don`t know what the father does, the stepfather. But why would anybody target this family? They`re not likely to have money.

YOUNG: Well, that`s why I think it`s someone who`s related to the situation. We keep hearing stepfather, stepfather. Where`s the biological father? What is his role? What is his family`s role? Maybe they want this child back in their family. That`s where I would start the investigation.
if he was knocked out, how did he get such a great description of the men if, in fact, he`s the one providing that description?
SIGONA: That`s a very good question, Jane. And that`s something that police aren`t commenting on. All that they will say at this point is, look, this is a suspect description that we have. This is the information that we were given. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1001/18/ijvm.01.html

Aslan

January 19th, 2010, 01:23 AM

Gee, they are looking for bio dad?
what an innovative concept.

I actually think stepdad is innocent here. I also think mom isn't being truthful about daddy

Silvahalo

January 19th, 2010, 01:55 AM

Very suspicious. Who the hell took him and where the hell is baby Aevion?? babies aren't bargaining things or play things folks! wtf?! treating children's lives like they aren't even real, living breathing things. SICKENING.

Dakota Valkyrie

January 19th, 2010, 07:45 PM

Not Good...

Police are now treating the case of a missing Roanoke toddler as a death investigation.

2-year-old Aveion Lewis was reported missing to police last Thursday, but police say conflicting stories forced them to focus on his step-father.

Brandon Lockett, who we spoke to last week, is now in custody, and being questioned in the death of his step-son. He has not been charged.

Police say that Lockett told them Aveion was dead prior to his 911 to report the child missing.

However, police have not located the boy's body, and will continue searching until the body is found.http://www.wset.com/news/stories/0110/697571.html

Whisper

January 19th, 2010, 08:32 PM

Im out of thanks but ty dv.Its not good at all.

crickett

January 19th, 2010, 09:01 PM

Out of Thanks DV but wanted to thank you for the update. I actually thought stepdad was hinky from the get go. He was able to give far to thorough descriptions of the supposed perps. I think he out-smarted himself.
However; I wanted to be wrong. I really did. you couldn't look at that adorable toddlers cute chubby little face and not want to be wrong on this. I wanted him to be alive.

Whisper

January 19th, 2010, 09:24 PM

yeah his description was to accurate to be knocked unconscious like he claimed.Probrably had some friend buff up his face to look like he was beat up or the mom kicked his ass after she found her babys body!

Pene784

January 19th, 2010, 11:13 PM

Did anyone think this would end in any other way?

Whisper

January 20th, 2010, 12:56 AM

Missing Boy Feared Dead; Suspect in Vicious Home Invasion Appears in Court

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST
Fast breaking, disturbing developments in the desperate search for this adorable boy, Aveion Lewis. Police now say they believe the little boy is dead and that he was never abducted in the first place. Cops are now shifting their attention to the stepfather. Tonight, we will have the very latest in this fast-breaking, fast-changing case. VELEZ-MITCHELL:
Tonight, heartbreaking developments, and I mean heartbreaking, in the case of this missing 2-year-old Virginia boy. Police now believe little Aveion Lewis is dead.

Police say his step-dad confessed that the boy was already dead and that the kidnapping story, he said, was a lie. Police are now scouring the Roanoke area for this precious little child`s body.

The step-dad, Brandon Lockett, is in custody, but he has not been charged with the death at this point. Police think the little boy was dead even before Lockett called 911 to report an abduction on Thursday.

Now, the step-dad initially said three men burst into his home, knocked him unconscious, bound and gagged a 4-year-old girl and then kidnapped little Aveion. Listen to this.http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1001/19/ijvm.01.html can read whole story at link

Silvahalo

January 20th, 2010, 01:03 AM

Police say his step-dad confessed that the boy was already dead and that the kidnapping story, he said, was a lie. Police are now scouring the Roanoke area for this precious little child`s body.
No surprise, none at all.

Fuckn baby killers. Damn them all to Hell!

Whisper

January 20th, 2010, 01:16 AM

http://i46.tinypic.com/2j3nzuw.jpg

Whisper

January 20th, 2010, 01:16 AM

I have no thanks but yeah torture them

Aslan

January 20th, 2010, 01:22 AM

:sad5: crap

Dakota Valkyrie

January 20th, 2010, 09:22 AM

[...]
Investigators had doubts early on about the validity of the reported abduction, Gaskins said.

"We had some reservations about the stories that were being told, but considering the child, we couldn't afford to assume that an abduction had not occurred, so we certainly had to work it from the angle that there had been an abduction," Gaskins said.

During the investigation, police received varying degrees of cooperation from people they interviewed, Gaskins said. That led them to question the validity of the information they were receiving, especially from Brandon Lockett, Gaskins said.
[...]

Morgan Lockett's brother, Chris Ward, said in an interview Tuesday that his family also had doubts about Brandon Lockett's story.

"I believe that he could have done something to him," Ward said Tuesday before police announced that they believe Aveion is dead.

Ward also said he found it strange that his sister hadn't been reaching out to the family since Aveion's disappearance.

"I believe he has my sister scared to say something."
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/233584

http://i48.tinypic.com/16a1oc6.jpg

koochie

January 20th, 2010, 11:43 AM

poor baby boy, my heart breaks for him....tragic.

MadeaBecBec

January 20th, 2010, 08:50 PM

Brandon Lockett told them Aveion was dead *sob* Okay now get to telling what you did with his little body, you scumbucket!! I fear the reason he has not told is because what he did to him was horrifying and sickening!!

So sorry sweet Aveion, so very sorry!

The search for Aveion Lewis continues as his Stepfather Brandon Lockett is charged with neglect, improper disposal of a body, and obstruction of justice.

Dogs and recovery crews searched the ground and the banks of the Roanoke River Wednesday, focusing on a two mile area surrounding Lockett’s home. Captain Curtis Davis with the Roanoke Police Department, says more than one hundred people at any given time are out searching. “There is a dedicated team constantly on this trying to find the body.“

http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/brandon_lockett_is_charged_with_neglect_improper_d isposal_of_a_body_and_obs/76169/

A comment at wsls:

Posted by Broken Hearted on January 20, 2010 at 6:12 pm
I am/ was Aveions Foster mother, and I couldn’t have loved that little boy any more, if I had given birth to him myself. I still can’t understand why or how the system failed him so terribly. I guess it’s really not meant for me and my family to really know. There is one thing for sure, my husband, children and I will not stop this fight until justice is served for Aveion.
He could light up the room with his smile, warm your heart with his laughter and hugs and just melt you on the spot with “I wuvs you” (I love you). He will always hold a special place in all of our hearts......I love you Doodle Bug!!- Mommy!!

Whisper

January 21st, 2010, 12:47 AM

Well, good evening, Jane. As you just mentioned, this investigation has changed. It has taken a turn. It is no longer an investigation into a potential abduction. It is now a death investigation. Not a homicide investigation, at this point a death investigation.

Brandon Lockett stands charged with felony child neglect, the unlawful disposal of a human body, and obstruction of justice for leading not just the Roanoke Police Department but the FBI and the Virginia State Police on a wild goose chase by making up this story of an abduction of this little toddler.

Now, the investigation is continuing. They still have not found his body. And the authorities are concerned because there is a winter storm watch in effect from tomorrow morning to Friday morning, ice, a lot of ice, and rain expected, and that may hamper their search for the body.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Judge Greg Mathis, this is what I don`t understand. They`re searching for the body. The cops say that this person we`re looking at right here confessed to making it all up. So if you`re going to confess to making it all up and admit the boy was dead before you called 911, why not go the whole way and tell them where the body is?

JUDGE GREG MATHIS, "THE JUDGE MATHIS SHOW": Yes, that`s what I`m confused about, as well. He should -- I haven`t heard the explanation that he`s saying did happen. For example, it was an accident he`s tried to cover up, an accidental death, then he should say that. All we know, that he has said she [SIC] died before. And the body is missing. We know those two things.

But I think he should be charged with murder, not just neglect. Felony neglect.

They have charged Brandon Lockett with felony child neglect, improper disposal of a human body, and obstruction of justice. So let me ask Keith Sullivan, criminal defense attorney, do the charges indicate that police believe little Aveion`s death was an accident and then the whole kidnapping story was a cover-up? Or could they simply be waiting for discovery of the body before they can consider a charge of murder?

KEITH SULLIVAN CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: What`s clear here is that felony neglect charge is -- indicates to us that the police know a lot more than they`re telling us. The statute requires that there be willful conduct. That`s an intentional standard that leads to serious injury. So there`s things that they`re aware of that they haven`t revealed to the public that merits out that he meet that standard.
And let me tell you something. We are learning now Child Protective Services has been involved with this family before. Aveion`s aunt says that child welfare workers came to the home when the boy was just 15 months old. They investigated the parents for possible neglect. No charges were ever filed.

Dr. Dale Archer, every time we cover one of these stories, who is one of the supporting characters? Department of Children and Family Services, and yet somehow in the story line they never quite intercept the tragedy? Rest is at link,,,http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1001/20/ijvm.01.html

Whisper

January 21st, 2010, 12:55 AM

ROANOKE, VIRGINIA - UPDATE: ROANOKE, Va. (AP) -
The stepfather of a missing Roanoke toddler has been charged with felony child neglect.

Roanoke police said 24-year-old Brandon Lockett also was charged today (January 20, 2010) with improper disposal of a human body and obstruction of justice.

Police continued to search wooded areas and the banks of the Roanoke River for the body of two-year-old Aveion Malik Lewis. Lockett had told police that three men abducted the boy from the family's Roanoke home on January 14th and left a note asking for money. Police say there was no abduction. They believe Lewis was dead before authorities received a 911 call from the home on January 14th.

Roanoke Police now believe a missing two-year-old may be dead. They are now switching their search for him to a death investigation.
Below is a press release from Roanoke Police with the latest:

On January 14, 2010, the Roanoke Police Department received a report of the abduction of Aveion Malik Lewis from the 2100 block of King Charles Avenue. Since then, the department has investigated the reported abduction and received varying degrees of cooperation from key persons in the investigation; which lead police to question the validity of information received from some individuals.

As a result, investigators began to focus on the possibility that Brandon Lockett, Aveion' step-father was not providing accurate details. Based on conflicting statements given, and significant developments within the last 24 hours, police determined that it was necessary to expand the previous and ongoing ground search. As the search progressed, Police were advised that the reported abduction did not occur. I

t is with great regret and sadness that the Roanoke Police Department announces that our investigation has moved from an abduction to an investigation into the death of Aveion Malik Lewis. All indications are that Aveion was deceased prior to the 911 call made on January 14. This information has been provided by Brandon Lockett. Unfortunately, police do not yet have a known location of Aveion's body. The expanded ground search, which began this morning will continue in an effort locate Aveion.

Investigators are working to obtain more information surrounding the circumstances of Aveion's death, and those details cannot be released at this time. During this investigation we have received overwhelming support and cooperation from the public, and the Roanoke Police Department thanks everyone for their cooperation. The department asks for the public's continued support, assistance, and cooperation.

This investigation is ongoing, and anyone with additional information regarding this investigation should call the Roanoke Police Department. The department thanks the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Virginia State Police, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and numerous public safety agencies and search teams from across the state and outside Virginia.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/wtvr-missing-roanoke-boy-update,0,7689978.story

Silvahalo

January 21st, 2010, 01:09 AM

Discussions here on FB, on the search for little Aveion's body. I'm still taking it in that he's dead. I think we all knew the story was BS, but the finality of it now just hurts. So sorry baby Aveion.
http://www.facebook.com/rpdsafercity

The liar baby killer, Aveion's stepfather speaks out. Can hardly understand him.... obviously before he admitted to kill him. Liar, makes me sick.
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Whisper

January 21st, 2010, 01:11 AM

TY I agree,I have been searching for mugshot of him and cant get one so far

Silvahalo

January 21st, 2010, 01:27 AM

I don't think I want to know exactly how Aveion died. He was 2 yo just like my son and the mere idea of what might have been done to him consumes me with deep sorrow. How could this man kill and lie? what did he do with him? Is their no soul in humanity?

You deserved life Aveion, life protected, loved and cherished. I hope you are found now to be laid properly at rest. May the angels kiss your tears away...little angel in the heavens.

http://i510.photobucket.com/albums/s341/silvahalo68/Fallen%20angels/c38bce27.jpg

Dakota Valkyrie

January 21st, 2010, 08:35 AM

[...]
Neither Caldwell nor Roanoke police Capt. Curtis Davis would explain why Lockett has been charged with child neglect, or whether that led to the toddler's death, because of the ongoing investigation.

"The charges are appropriate for what we have developed at this time," Davis said.

Lockett has been cooperating in some aspects of the investigation but not others, Davis said.

Lockett has a criminal record in Georgia, where he is still on probation for possession of cocaine, according to court documents.

He also has a history of violence.

Court records from Bibb County, Ga., show that in 2006 Lockett was accused of striking Janet Balkcom, the mother of his infant, with a candleholder.

He pleaded guilty to the family violence simple battery charge and was sentenced to one year of probation, according to court records. He was also required to attend a family violence intervention program and pay a fine.

About a month later, Lockett forced his way into Balkcom's home and fought with a man, according to court records. Balkcom called police from a neighbor's house.

Officers noticed a large amount of blood on the floor, and that a table lamp was broken. The victim fled from the house and wasn't seen again.

Lockett pleaded guilty to family violence criminal trespassing in that case.

He served 60 days in jail and then returned to probation.

In two separate instances in Roanoke last year, Lockett was pulled over for speeding and for driving on a learner's permit without a licensed driver. Police also cited him both times for not having a child restraint in the car, according to court records.
[...]
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/233714

Dakota Valkyrie

January 21st, 2010, 07:42 PM

http://i47.tinypic.com/9s8pkw.jpg
Roanoke police have suspended their search for the body of little Aveion Lewis, because of the weather. They'll pick up the search again when things clear.

Meanwhile, there is new information about Aveion's disappearance and his stepfather. Brandon Lockett is now in jail, charged in connection with the boy's death. One of the more startling accusations is that Brandon Lockett may have been setting his alibi in motion at least a day before Avieon was reported missing.

Lockett's neighbor, James Tyree claims Lockett was already setting the stage for Avieon's abduction a full day before the boy went missing.

"He tried to say he had an anonymous call. He showed me his phone. Yes it had an anonymous call... but I thought that was suspicious," Tyree said.

Suspicious because, as Tyree describes it, Lockett claimed the call came from the would-be kidnapper.

"I think he was trying to set the whole situation up himself."

According to courts documents, police searched the Lockett's home looking for several items including guns, bullets, tools used to dismember or maim, as well as books or other media related to child kidnappings.

The documents also describe the 16-months Aveion spent in foster care. He was taken from the Locketts for not complying with medical instructions to keep Aveion healthy. He had a section of his intestine removed and needed a special diet. At 14 months, Aveion weighed less than 9-pounds and was placed in foster care due to a "failure to thrive." Within 45-days in foster care his weight doubled, but a prolonged court battle was won by the Lockett's and Aveion was returned last September.

The records say that since then, Aveion suffered from blistering burns on both legs caused by a home heater. The Lockett's claimed that medical attention was never sought out because Aveion had "a high threshold for pain" and because the family had previous run-ins with the Department of Social Services.

Other information related to Lockett's past also came out in the documents, including the fact that Lockett was under the influence of drugs the night Aveion was reported missing. ...

Lockett was also convicted of two charges in 2006 and 2007 in Georgia; both involving "family violence."
http://www.wset.com/news/stories/0110/698414.html

crickett

January 21st, 2010, 08:01 PM

Children's Services and the legal system/Judge FAILS again! Congrat-u-fuck-u-lations!

Whisper

January 21st, 2010, 08:27 PM

At 14 months, Aveion weighed less than 9-pounds and was placed in foster care due to a "failure to thrive." Omg!!How can a child weigh so little at that age no matter what the medical prob>???!! I weigh 100 -105 lbs and my daughter weighed 7lbs 15 ozs.And this child was 14 months old and weighed that little and they never took him before 14 nmonths??

Aveion suffered from blistering burns on both legs caused by a home heater. The Lockett's claimed that medical attention was never sought out because Aveion had "a high threshold for pain" OMFG I have given myself a headache crying b/c of this.Burns are the most painful injury anyone can get!!!No one has a threshold that high.Lets fucking burn these 2 POS and see how high their threshold is.Ive said it before and Ill say it again.These are 2 prime examples of who I would give my home up for the chance to see these 2 dragged from a jail cell kicking and screaming and strung up from the first tree we found!!!They deserve to feel terror and pain like that baby did at theIr hands.The people who are supposed to take the pain away and comfort them not fucking torture and kill them,then scramble to cover their ass!!! I need to find my tylenol after this.I really thought my skin had thickened a bit

Silvahalo

January 22nd, 2010, 02:18 AM

After reading about Aveion's life I'm certain his death was a terrible, grueling ending. All I want to know now is when this fucker will die. I'll pay for a front row seat.

thequeenofsorrow

January 22nd, 2010, 11:13 AM

UPDATED JAN. 22: Investigators have resumed their search for Aveion Lewis. Police said Friday that teams are searching an area around the home, including the Roanoke River, for the boy's remains.

A search warrant unsealed Thursday in the case of Aveion Lewis describes his death as a homicide and his short life as one of neglect.

The 2-year-old had recently suffered blistering burns on both legs from a heater, and did not receive medical care for those injuries, the search warrant says.

Before that, he'd been placed in foster care for 16 months, the document said.

Aveion has been missing since Jan. 14, when his parents called police and reported that he'd been abducted.

Police said they have since learned from the child's stepfather, Brandon Lockett, that Aveion died before police were contacted. His body has not been found. Thursday's search was postponed because of inclement weather, police said.

The search warrant did not state how police believe the toddler died.

On Wednesday, police charged Lockett, 24, with felony child neglect, improper disposal of a human body and obstruction of justice. Aveion's mother, Morgan Lockett, has been interviewed by police but has not been charged.

The search warrant, filed Wednesday in Roanoke Circuit Court, says that Aveion was born with a medical problem that required surgery to remove part of his intestines. As a result, he had a strict feeding schedule and needed medication.

When he was 14 months old, he weighed less than 9 pounds, and authorities found that his parents were not following the medical instructions for his care, the search warrant says.

Aveion, who would have turned 3 later this month, was removed from his home for 16 months, in which time he doubled his weight, according to the document.

He returned to his parents' home on King Charles Avenue in Southeast Roanoke in September, according to the search warrant.

At that time, the Locketts were having financial problems and they were taking care of three other children, according to the document.

The search warrant says Aveion was described as having a "high threshold for pain."

Police searched the Locketts' home Tuesday and took a number of items including cellphones, a handwritten letter, children's clothing, a pillow, a mattress, a "green leafy substance," baby bottles and prescription medicine.

The FBI is helping the police investigate Aveion's death, and it provided statistics about cases of false allegations to cover up the death of a child. Those statistics, which were included in the search warrant, indicate:

In 44 percent of cases, there is a history of previous physical abuse or maltreatment.

In 53 percent of cases, there was a prolonged period of separation from the parents.

In 41 percent of cases, the victim had been described by the offender as being "difficult" or "different."

In 92 percent of cases, the families have other domestic problems including financial, drug-related, multiple toddlers and family violence issues.

http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/233846

Oh little Aveion. Sweet baby you couldn't have been so "difficult" that two grown people couldn't figure you out. I am so sorry your short life was so sad. You are in a better place, I'm sure of it. You deserved so much more.

Saffron

January 22nd, 2010, 12:06 PM

These people really piss me off. There are things that can be done no matter how difficult. One of my RL friends is my hero. She fosters (and adopts) children with much more severe medical issues. One of her kids she was told wouldn't live to see six months. He was born with only a brain stem, addicted to meth at birth, etc. He is now SIX YEARS old. A testament to the love and care my friend gives him. He can't do much, is in horrifying pain much of the time due to his medical issues and often screams. He can't communicate except to scream but he does have his likes and dislikes. He smiles and of the few things he can say is Mama. He likes soft and cuddly things. He is more than just a bit of flesh even though everyone said he couldn't live and he'd never be anything more than a vegetable. I don't wish his "life" on anyone and I'm not sure that saving his life did him any favors (he was born with an Apgar of 0 and a second Apgar of 3). It is a sad, sad existence at best but HE IS LOVED and he is proof that even the most difficult medical cases can live with proper care. And few of these "difficult" medical cases ever seem as bad as all the problems my friend's son has...

Whisper

January 22nd, 2010, 01:28 PM

Thats great Saffrom,that takes alot of patience and love to look after children like that

Saffron

January 22nd, 2010, 01:47 PM

I don't think I could do it either... the boy's constant screaming would drive me insane I think but it can be done. If they can't handle it, pass the child to someone who can handle it. It's funny, it's the friend I never could imagine as a mother. I'm so proud and humble to be her friend. I could probably handle the rest of her adopted brood, they are all very sweet and lovable and all medically fragile. She is just amazing to me.

ScribbleMuse

January 22nd, 2010, 09:29 PM

Sounds like little Aveion's intestinal problem was basically a form of gastric bypass, though obviously done from medical emergency rather than weight loss. I had it for weight loss, and I can't imagine the care and nurturing required to keep a baby thriving. The very nature of the operation takes away the ability to absorb the nutrients so badly needed in a child--an overweight adult does not need the same amounts to grow bones and muscles, but it's still a constant struggle to keep the right balance of nutrients. This baby should have stayed in foster care and been adopted to the loving foster parents. Now he's dead and had probably suffered the entire time he was with the worthless idiots the state allowed to take him.

Whisper

January 23rd, 2010, 05:35 PM

jANUARY 23 2010 Toddler Aveion Lewis' dad speaks about losing his son
James Lewis took his son, Aveion, and daughter, Gabrielle, to family cookouts, and spent time with them at home. But that changed, Lewis said, when the children's mother began dating Brandon Lockett.

"It just seemed like she was shutting me out of my kids' lives," Lewis said Friday, the first time he's spoken publicly since Aveion's death.

Lewis, 23, also talked about his custody battles with Morgan Lockett and the Department of Social Services.

Social Services issued a statement Friday about Aveion's case. Social workers put him in foster care for 16 months after he was found to be severely underweight. He was returned to his home after the Locketts completed classes and other requirements, the news release said.

Police are still searching for the 2-year-old's body. The Locketts reported to police Jan. 14 that Aveion was abducted, but Brandon Lockett later told police that the toddler had died.

Police haven't said how Aveion might have died, but a search warrant said they are investigating the toddler's death as a homicide.

Brandon Lockett has been charged with felony child neglect, improper disposal of a human body and obstruction of justice.

Morgan Lockett has not been charged.
Aveion's case came to Social Services in May 2008, when the boy was 14 months old. The department got a report that Morgan Lockett was neglecting Aveion, and that he was severely underweight.

A search warrant filed this week in Roanoke City Circuit Court said Aveion weighed less than 9 pounds at that time.

Aveion was born with a medical problem that required surgery to remove part of his intestines, according to the warrant. As a result, he had a strict feeding schedule and needed medication.

Two days after Social Services was notified, Aveion was taken into protective custody so he could get the medical treatment he needed, the news release said.

Aveion remained in foster care until March. During that time, Social Services developed a plan for Aveion's mother and stepfather that was approved, and periodically reviewed, by the Roanoke Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.

The plan included having Brandon Lockett attend an 18-week program on domestic violence alternatives, which he completed, the news release said.

He and Morgan Lockett also completed a parenting education class.

While in foster care, Aveion doubled in weight, according to the search warrant.

During that time, Lewis said he visited his son and tried to get custody of him.

"I was always worried about him," Lewis said.

In December 2008, Social Services allowed the Locketts to have extended visitations with Aveion at their home.

A clinical in-home therapist spent 20 to 30 hours per month observing the Locketts parenting, reinforcing and teaching good parenting practices, and watching Aveion's adjustment, the news release said.

In March, Aveion was returned home, but Social Services retained legal custody. The in-home therapy continued, and Aveion's social worker made scheduled and unscheduled visits to see that Aveion's medical needs were met.

In September, a judge awarded Morgan Lockett legal custody of Aveion on the recommendation of Social Services, the news release said.

Jane Conlin, director of Social Services in Roanoke, said Friday that the responsibility for what happened to Aveion does not rest with her department.

"The person who is responsible for this is not the social worker," she said. "I think we need to keep in mind that social workers aren't mind readers. We work with the best knowledge and information we have and within the law. Nobody can, with 100 percent accuracy, predict the behavior of another person."

Lewis, however, said he never trusted Brandon Lockett.

"The way Brandon was, it just seemed like he wanted to get to me," Lewis said.

The two would have confrontations during court hearings, and Lewis said that his children's mother's attitude toward him changed after she began dating Lockett.

That's when Lewis said he lost contact with his children.

He recalled several times that he tried to see them, such as on Aveion's first birthday, when he said Morgan Lockett wouldn't answer the door.

Lewis' mother, Briggitte Mason, also said she had to go to court to get visitation rights and, even then, found herself knocking on a door that wouldn't open.

"How many times can you get your heart broke?" Mason said.

Now Lewis, who works at Walmart and at the Roanoke Civic Center, wants custody of his daughter, who is about to turn 4.

She is currently staying with Morgan Lockett's mother, who is also looking after Brandon Lockett's two children, said Cara Ward, Morgan Lockett's sister.

Ward has been busy collecting donated items for the children because no one wants to go back to the Southeast Roanoke home where Aveion was last seen.

The Kirk Family YMCA, Total Action Against Poverty, Babies and Children Inc. and other businesses have donated toys, clothing and other items, Ward said.

She said her family has been touched by the community's support, and she praised Roanoke police for their dedication.

The support, and the family's faith, are keeping them going.

"We believe Aveion is in heaven," she said.http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/234025 http://i50.tinypic.com/epnp7c.jpg

Cara Ward is the aunt of Aveion Lewis and the sister of Morgan Lockett, the boy's mother. Ward said the family has been touched by the community's supporthttp://i49.tinypic.com/2hiavds.jpg
James Lewis, biological father of Aveion Lewis, says he struggled to get custody of both his daughter and son

Whisper

January 23rd, 2010, 05:36 PM

Video: Cadaver dogs aid in search for body of missing Roanoke toddler Press conference: Police believe 2-year-old Aveion Lewis is dead BOTH AT THE LINK http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/234025

Whisper

January 23rd, 2010, 05:40 PM

The reason they havent found the body yet is because once they do its going to have more then the burns on it that they have already copped to.If they willingly gave that info to police and said they didnt seek treatment my gut tells me theres alot more and mommy will be charged very soon after they find his little body.Thats why they havent found him ,the parents(mommy dearest and stepdad) arent telling where he is kinda like a casey anthony thing hoping its to far decpmposed to tell much about cause of death.

Dakota Valkyrie

January 24th, 2010, 07:11 AM

Memorial website for Aveion. Candles, condolences, cute pics.
http://aveion-lewis.last-memories.com/

Silvahalo

January 24th, 2010, 07:00 PM

http://i510.photobucket.com/albums/s341/silvahalo68/Fallen angels/f46df5fa-1.jpg

Whisper

January 24th, 2010, 08:03 PM

UPDATE 22 MINUTES AGOJanuary 24, 2010

Officers search Roanoke River for Aveion Lewis' bodyRoanoke Police were back on the Roanoke River Sunday looking for the body of two-year-old Aveion Lewis.

Salem and State Police are helping with the search and offering use of their equipment. We're told divers were in and out of the water Sunday afternoon.

"We have a pole camera that's normally used for SWAT operations that we're using to search the actual bottom of the river," says Sgt. Chris Bolling with the Roanoke Police Department.

There's still no sign of baby Lewis, even after a seven-hour search Sunday.

Police say his stepfather, Brandon Lockett, made up a story about Aveion being kidnapped. The case has shifted from abduction to murder.

Even though authorities continue to concentrate their efforts in and around the Roanoke River, a spokeswoman for the department says that's just one of many spots searchers are spending their time.

It's now been ten days since Aveion's stepfather reported him missing.http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?s=11873005&clienttype=printable http://i50.tinypic.com/2na5geg.jpgIt's now been ten days since Aveion Lewis' stepfather reported him missing

Whisper

January 24th, 2010, 08:10 PM

January 24, 2010Candle light vigil held for Aveion Lewis
Authorities are still searching for the body of a toddler who went missing more than a week ago, and they're now searching the Roanoke River.

The river is near the apartment complex where the toddler, two-year-old Aveion Lewis, lived.

Police say his stepfather, Brandon Lockett, made up a story about Aveion being kidnapped. The case has shifted from abduction to murder.

The community came together Saturday night to hold a candle light vigil in honor of Aveion Lewis.

Dozens of people stood in front of his house to say a prayer, light a candle and grieve. Aveion's uncles, aunts, friends, family and even people who never knew him came together.

Organized by extended family, many people were pleasantly surprised by the turn out. They say the family, who was in attendance, is grateful.

"Something like this [shows] the family that people do care and people aren't just sitting around," says the vigil's organizer Denitra Birkes.

"Everybody loves them, and everybody has their back, and it's just the support during a trying time like this," says another organizer Breana King.

Aveion's mother, Morgan Lockett, was so upset she had to leave. She and her other children are staying with family.

Its been over a week since two-year-old Aveion Lewis disappeared and his stepfather Brandon Lockett was taken into custody.

Aveion's uncle, Chris Ward, says Aveion's mother is staying with her family. She has not been charged.

Ward says he was never a fan of her sister's husband.

Social Services releases information to News7 on Aveion Lewis

"I didn't even come to the wedding... but I did try to welcome him into the family," says Ward.

As for his sister, Ward says he wants people to know she was not a bad person.

"My sister's not a monster and she definitely didn't play a role in her own son's death, if that's what people are thinking," says Ward. "It's like a bad dream right now for her."[/
http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=11870551

Whisper

January 24th, 2010, 10:30 PM

Search for body of Aveion Lewis suspended Saturday night
People from all over the Commonwealth, and some from as far away as Pennsylvania, are now helping in the search for the body of Aveion Lewis. Friday, we told you a search warrant showed police are now investigating the death of the 2 year-old as a murder. The search for his body continued Friday along the banks of the Roanoke River.
As we’ve reported, Aveion’s step-father, Brandon Lockett, is charged with felony child neglect and improper disposal of a body.
Saturday, the search for Aveion’s body reached day four. More than 80 people spread out to look for the boy. “We have everything from search dogs, to mounted patrols. We may even use aviation assets. We also have swift water rescue teams out as well”, said Sgt. Chris Bolling.
The search teams are working a 1.5 mile area around the home where Aveion was last seen alive. That search could be interrupted by bad weather moving in to the area. “Supposed to have torrential rains tonight and tomorrow. The search will be suspended after this evening. Then it will be re-evaluated as to what and how we will continue it”, said Bolling.
Anyone with information about Aveion Lewis is asked to call Roanoke Police at 853-2212 http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/search_for_body_of_aveion_lewis_suspended_saturday _night/76722/ A couple comments from tonight at the bottom of that article shows everyones tired of not finding the babys body and are getting pissed. This first post was what started some arguements and I agree with lawgirl,NEVERMIND does kinda come off as a relative to the mom but I could wrong.
Posted by nevermind on January 24, 2010 at 1:57 pm
“lawgirl”, you comment like you know all, but I question your user name and ability to know anything.

You act as if you know something the police do not. The FBI and the Roanoke Police depts have done this kind of investigation before. This is not their first homicide by proxy. If they have credible info that the mother was culpable, they would have acted upon it. Don’t go passing judgment on her, when you are only guessing and the people who have all the facts are doing their job.

They have decades of stats showing who is most likely involved. Of course the FBI considered the mother. For what ever reason, unknown to you, they have not arrested her. However, what ever the reason, it is based upon the laws and evidence and not upon that they never thought of investigating her…until you spoke up…lol

Please keep your legal advise to stuff you actually know and stop persecuting the mother over something you do not know of.

Your post have been a distraction from the true point in this case and that point would be the loss of a young child. Try focusing on that and not the bashing and public hanging of the mother.

God bless Aveion. May he be found and laid to rest soon.

am so sorry this has happened to a beautiful innocent child. What I do not understand is why the stepfather who said the baby died prior to 911 does not reveal where this baby is at. Here he is in a warm place and food given to him, while this baby body is lying somewhere in this frigid cold damp weather somewhere. My heart cries for this little child. Why did he bother to even say the baby died prior, if he was not going to reveal any further details?? They should bound him in chains and put him out in the weather to find the baby and not let him back inside til the baby is found. Let him see what he has done to that innocent child. It will be a picture that will haunt him for the rest of his life. On the other hand when the baby is found he should be made to look at this child and have molded into his brain the PICTURE he painted. How sad. The other children I hope are in protective custody somewhere. God bless all little children. Hold them all close to your bosom and protect them.
from what i have collectively read the so called mother of aveion was at the memorial service breifly but was"overcome with grief” so had to leave early, yeah right she was probably afraid for her safety, if i were in her position i would be. i did notice however a can for donations at the candlelight service i would not dare donate anything to this horrid monster of a woman she has no consience and obviously aquired no maternal instincts during her multiple pregnancies, the brother of morgan murderer has said that he believes in her innocence which is im sure just this man giving his sister the benefit of the doubt i pray for them when the truth is revealed i know that she knows more than what she is telling!
Wow “nevermind”,did I touch a nerve? I don’t believe the police have time to come in here to read posts, trust me, they have more things to worry about, but back to you. I will say whatever I want about this so called mom, when I feel like it, If you don’t like it, find somewhere else to post your comments. It appear you must be related to this neglected mom since you’re coming to her defense, but guess what? I’m not the ONLY one who is rediculing her. She was at the memorial? Some nerve she had, and I’m glad I didn’t come because I would have told her a few things that probably would have gotten me kicked out. I spoke ONLY what I’ve seen from this case and what is being reported on the news. If you want to take up for a sorry person like her, go ahead, but I won’t spare her any sympathy, because she had a major part in this baby’s disappearance. My comments are nothing compared to what others have said. She was in tears? Tears of guilt, and I do not believe for a minute she was suffereing, probably crying and hoping they won’t find his body, then they will drag her a.. off to jail too. There is no way you could live with a monster like Lockett, and not know what was going on around you.I cannot wait to tune into the news, and she is the big headline. “MOTHER ARRESTED”!!!!!http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/search_for_body_of_aveion_lewis_suspended_saturday _night/76722/

Silvahalo

January 26th, 2010, 05:58 PM

Avion would have been 3 yo. today. So sorry Aveion, you deserved life with many happy returns.

http://i510.photobucket.com/albums/s341/silvahalo68/Fallen%20angels/abused%20kids/45d5ac0b.jpg

Dakota Valkyrie

January 27th, 2010, 07:32 PM

Roanoke police chief Joe Gaskins said today that searchers found the body of a small boy in the Smith Gap Regional Landfill in Western Roanoke County today at 12:30 p.m.

Police looking for missing Roanoke toddler Aveion Lewis had isolated trash originating from the 2100 block of King Charles Avenue in Roanoke, where the 2-year-old lived with his mother and stepfather, Morgan and Brandon Lockett. Teams of searchers found the body in the isolated trash.

The medical examiner's office in Roanoke will identify the body and determine a cause of death. Police did not release details about the age or race of the child found. They also would not say how they believe the child died.
[...]

Roanoke Commonwealth's Attorney Don Caldwell said the grand jury, which will meet Monday, had been scheduled to consider a murder charge against Brandon Lockett. Now that police have discovered a child's body, that may change, Caldwell said.

"If it appears there is additional evidence that can be gathered, we may withhold placing additional charges" until the grand jury meets again in March, Caldwell said.
http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/234529

Tuesday would have been Aveion's third birthday.

Whisper

January 27th, 2010, 10:02 PM

Thanks for the update DV,I wish this was the last child angel pic I will have to post for a murdered child,but I dont think it is http://i48.tinypic.com/155hvzp.jpg REST IN PEACE AVEION

Whisper

January 27th, 2010, 10:17 PM

http://i48.tinypic.com/9sfbme.jpg Workers searched dump. http://i46.tinypic.com/1z6quyv.jpg
Last week, police charged Brandon Lockett with felony child neglect, improper disposal of a human body and obstruction of justice. http://i48.tinypic.com/rc1te8.jpg
Roanoke Police Chief Joe Gaskins says Lockett gave numerous stories to the police, many of which have turned out to be falsehttp://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=11889797

coffee achiever

January 27th, 2010, 10:41 PM

All I can say is that this must be absolutely devastating for the foster family who loved and cared for him for over half of his short little life. To see the child they nursed back to health murdered by a drug-addled jackass and then hauled off to the landfill with the rest of the garbage.

God, people suck sometimes.

thequeenofsorrow

January 28th, 2010, 04:37 PM

I hate people. This made me sick to my stomach that he was found at the landfill. What a cute boy. RIP angelface.

skeptik

January 28th, 2010, 04:41 PM

Killing children is NOT gangsta, loser stepdad.

Chaindrive

January 28th, 2010, 05:00 PM

I wonder how they "isolate" trash? Does each truck have a certain section in the landfill?

skeptik

January 28th, 2010, 05:15 PM

Oh yeah, they have maps of where stuff is dumped.

Whisper

January 30th, 2010, 12:21 AM

Court records: Child’s body in landfill ‘consistent’ with Aveion Lewis
Court records reveal new information about the Aveion Lewis case.

Police believe the two-year-old died sometime around January 14th. Investigators have not released an exact cause of death.

A search warrant on file in Roanoke Circuit Court claims the body found this past Wednesday in a Roanoke County landfill is *consistent* with Aveion Lewis. It reads “the body was found inside of packaging that was bound with an adhesive binding.“http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/court_records_reveal_new_information_about_the_ave ion_lewis_case/77773/
There's still no confirmation that the child's body found in the landfill Wednesday was Aveion Lewis.

Roanoke Police have searched the child's home again, looking for packing materials and tape in an attempt to match items in the house with remains found at the landfill.

Among the things seized from the home on King Charles Avenue, police took 17 pieces of duct tape and plastic bags.
They also found items that may help establish the child's identity, including hand and foot prints, medical records and samples of stains found in the bedroomhttp://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=11903955

Dakota Valkyrie

January 30th, 2010, 09:41 AM

When the body thought to be that of 2-year-old Aveion Lewis was found in a regional landfill, he was wrapped in packaging and tape, a search warrant filed in Roanoke Circuit Court on Friday said.
[...]

In a search warrant filed Friday, police said searchers found a child's body "inside of packaging that was bound with an adhesive binding."
[...]

Specifically, police were seeking "all packaging items. All identification items, receipts, bar codes, and applications for membership. Any adhesive tape. All documents pertaining to Aveion Lewis."

The search warrant return, filed later Friday afternoon, said police collected 17 pieces of duct tape, plastic grocery store shopping bags and a mop. Officers took swabs from a training toilet, toddler bed and stains under the toddler bed and on a bedroom closet door. And officers seized a variety of paperwork, including immunization records on Aveion's siblings, and a prescription bottle for Aveion's medication that had been filled in 2008.

Though identification of the body found at the landfill has not been confirmed, Aveion's relatives scheduled a memorial service for Sunday
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/234833

runecire

January 30th, 2010, 01:28 PM

We can only hope that the cold has helped to preserve any evidence. This guy needs to burn for what he did to this little angel.

Rest in peace, Aveion. You are in a better place now.

Dakota Valkyrie

February 2nd, 2010, 05:12 PM

Roanoke police and FBI agents are investigating whether a second person was involved in the death of Aveion Lewis, according to court papers.

A search warrant filed today in Roanoke City Circuit Court says the toddler's stepfather, Brandon Lockett, has made statements about a person who received Aveion's body for disposal. Lockett also provided a cell phone number.

Someone who uses that cell phone number has also used an e-mail address that police discovered on a computer seized from Lockett's home, the search warrant says. The e-mail address is linked to a Myspace page that displays Lockett's picture, the document says.

Police are seeking to search the e-mail account and hope that what they might find will either "confirm or dispel" Lockett's statements, identify anyone else involved, and reveal communication about Aveion Lewis, according to the document.
[...]
http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/235144

Gidget

February 2nd, 2010, 05:19 PM

It makes me absolutely ill to think that these assholes threw that sweet-faced little boy in the trash.

Seriously, what in the fuck is wrong with people?

Whisper

February 2nd, 2010, 05:22 PM

Im with you Gidget

TheMorningStar

February 4th, 2010, 03:00 PM

Roanoke police said in a press release Thursday that the medical examiner's office identified the boy as Aveion Malik Lewis. His body was found Jan. 27 in the Smith Gap Landfill.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100204/ap_on_re_us/us_toddler_found_dead;_ylt=Al1SckgVKNz6HfC8fYYyqwl vzwcF;_ylu=X3oDMTJydjVoOHN2BGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAwMjA 0L3VzX3RvZGRsZXJfZm91bmRfZGVhZARwb3MDMTcEc2VjA3luX 2FydGljbGVfc3VtbWFyeV9saXN0BHNsawNwb2xpY2Vib2R5Zm8-

LadyCygnet

February 4th, 2010, 03:47 PM

At least now there's some closure. That poor, sweet little baby...why didn't they let him stay in foster care?

"My sister's not a monster and she definitely didn't play a role in her own son's death, if that's what people are thinking," says Ward. "It's like a bad dream right now for her."

As far as I'm concerned, the minute she didn't take her son in to have the burns on his legs treated, the minute she didn't strictly enforce her baby's special diet, the minute she deferred to her pet penis's wishes, she DID play a role in her own son's death.

I'm beginning to think that requiring the men I date to undergo background checks and psychiatric evaluations wouldn't be a bad idea.

Silvahalo

February 9th, 2010, 08:40 PM

When the body thought to be that of 2-year-old Aveion Lewis was found in a regional landfill, he was wrapped in packaging and tape.

I had trouble coming into this thread as his body was found, seems babies are disappearing then found in unfathomable ways more and more....
Aveion was supposed to be celebrating his 3rd birthday instead, he was killed and dumped like trash. It would be justice to see his murderer and all who contributed to his demise, clean landfills for 3 years as the only source of "fresh air" they are allowed to breath. Of course then, his murderer would have to die...die and be forgotten.

Littlest Aveion, you deserved YOUR life to live and to fulfill your dreams.

How adorable, how could anyone?........so sorry sweet one.
http://i510.photobucket.com/albums/s341/silvahalo68/Fallen%20angels/abused%20children/a1eaa891.jpg

donegaveup

February 10th, 2010, 06:13 AM

Oops, almost groaned you Silvy, only because I'm out of thanks. Thanks for the picture. One thing I noticed about Aveion besides how impossibly cute he was, is how determined he looks in his pictures. He looks like he tried so hard to accomplish all he could in his much too short life. He also had one of the coolest names ever. I really like this little guy and think he would have gone on to do grand things in his life had he only been given the chance.

Dakota Valkyrie

March 3rd, 2010, 10:19 AM

http://i49.tinypic.com/2rngf7k.jpg http://i50.tinypic.com/30ihxqf.jpg

In back-to-back court hearings, Aveion Lewis' mother and stepfather wept, shook their heads and complained about accusations that they murdered their 2-year-old son.

"How was I indicted when I wasn't even charged?" Brandon R'eal Lockett Sr. protested during Tuesday's hearing, referring to indictments that a Roanoke grand jury returned a day earlier and to lesser charges filed against him in January in connection with the toddler's death.

Lockett, 24, and his wife, Morgan Elizabeth Ward Lockett, 23, were arraigned Tuesday in Roanoke Circuit Court on the new charges. Both are accused of second-degree murder, child neglect and cruelty.

Charges of improper disposal of a body, child neglect and obstructing justice filed last month against Brandon Lockett were dropped earlier Tuesday in the city's Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.
[...]

Morgan Lockett's hearing followed her husband's. Uncuffed and visibly pregnant, she sat crying and shaking her head as Weckstein read the charges against her.
[...]http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/238465

Morgan Lockett's sister says she and her family believe Morgan Lockett is guilty of nothing more than a bad choice in men. Cara Ward, Aveion's aunt, told CBS affiliate WDBJ her sister has cooperated with police from the beginning.

"She should have maybe caught warning signs, but I know she didn't directly kill her child, maybe indirectly by being with him," Ward told the station.

Roanoke Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell told the Roanoke Times that "evidence will show both parents knew" about Aveion's mistreatment.

The indictment says that Morgan Lockett caused or allowed Aveion "to be tortured, tormented, mutilated, beaten or cruelly treated" and failed to provide "necessary care for the child's health" since Jan. 27, 2007 -- the day after the child was born.

The indictments don't say the cause of Aveion's death, and Caldwell wouldn't elaborate.http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2010/03/02/crimesider/entry6259113.shtml

Whisper

March 3rd, 2010, 12:47 PM

Didnt he confess and tell them where he dumped the body??I dont understand these people who 100% confess and then decide to take it back and act as if they have never said a word

Dakota Valkyrie

March 3rd, 2010, 01:04 PM

Didnt he confess and tell them where he dumped the body??I dont understand these people who 100% confess and then decide to take it back and act as if they have never said a word
He doesn't believe the charges fit what he confessed to. The hearing was the official reading of the grand jury indictment and for whatever reason, he thinks they got it wrong. At the hearing, neither had a lawyer. Even if they wanted to plead guilty right then and there, no judge would accept it without a lawyer.

Whisper

March 3rd, 2010, 01:14 PM

K ty .I was sure he had confessed but didnt realize he had no lawyer at the time.

Dakota Valkyrie

March 11th, 2010, 05:17 PM

Aveion Lewis' mother, Morgan Elizabeth Ward Lockett, will remain jailed without bond as she awaits trial on charges she and her husband murdered the 2-year-old, a Roanoke Circuit Court judge ruled today.

Judge Clifford Weckstein denied the request for bond at a hearing today, citing the serious nature of the charges and three other children in the Lockett home. The other children are aged 4, almost 2 and almost 1. Lockett, 23, also is expecting another child in May.
http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/239513

Whisper

March 11th, 2010, 05:28 PM

Hope they let her sit there a long friggen time and think of what she didnt do
PROTECT HER CHILD
Although I could be wrong for now thats my opinion

donegaveup

March 11th, 2010, 05:33 PM

I had trouble coming into this thread as his body was found, seems babies are disappearing then found in unfathomable ways more and more....
Aveion was supposed to be celebrating his 3rd birthday instead, he was killed and dumped like trash. It would be justice to see his murderer and all who contributed to his demise, clean landfills for 3 years as the only source of "fresh air" they are allowed to breath. Of course then, his murderer would have to die...die and be forgotten.

Littlest Aveion, you deserved YOUR life to live and to fulfill your dreams.

How adorable, how could anyone?........so sorry sweet one.
http://i510.photobucket.com/albums/s341/silvahalo68/Fallen%20angels/abused%20children/a1eaa891.jpg

This picture with his name on his ride is so cool. Extra fine job on this one Silvy! I'd give you 10 reps for that I could. No, no I'd give you one of those star thingies. No, no, cross that out too, I'd give you the moon and stars for being so brilliant with the pictures!

The mother is pregnant now and due in May huh? Why am I not surprised?? :argh:

Dakota Valkyrie

March 14th, 2010, 09:44 AM

10 On Your Side’s Meagan Farley has learned the former foster parents of Aveion Lewis have filed the necessary paperwork to ask a judge to adopt Morgan Lockett’s three children.

This will have to worked out in the courts too.

Lockett’s attorneys said they’ll likely ask a judge to release her on bond before her baby is due on May 26th.

Lockett told the judge she intends to deliver by cesarian section.
[...]

Before his death in January, 3-year-old Aveion Lewis had a broken arm, severe burns, and was showing signs of severe starvation, according to new information just released from prosecutors in the case.http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/prosecutors_aveion_lewis_had_untreated_broken_arm_ severe_burns_severe_starv/86693/

ineedanap

March 15th, 2010, 11:06 AM

Before his death in January, 3-year-old Aveion Lewis had a broken arm, severe burns, and was showing signs of severe starvation, according to new information just released from prosecutors in the case.

They fucking starved him??? Fuck he was a baby!

Hats off to those foster parents because if it were me I would be running far far away from that murderous trainwreck, not trying to stay involved.

Dakota Valkyrie

March 17th, 2010, 07:52 AM

There was a time in Aveion Lewis' short life when he was a healthy, normal-sized boy.

That was when he was 26 months old. He'd been taken from his mother and stepfather and gained more than 20 pounds in the 11 months he lived with a foster family.

"He was returned a happy, pudgy little boy," Roanoke Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Sandra Workman said in an interview.

Aveion's pudgy period didn't last. In the four months between when Aveion's mom and stepdad regained custody and when the toddler's body was found in a Roanoke County landfill in January, he shed weight dramatically, said Workman, who will prosecute the parents on charges of second-degree murder, neglect and cruelty. Aveion was emaciated, she said, weighing far less than the 30 pounds to 40 pounds he weighed upon leaving foster care on March 31, 2009.
[...]

During a court hearing last week in which a judge ordered Morgan Lockett to remain jailed pending trial, Workman said the toddler was gaunt and suffered a broken arm that went untreated in his final four to six weeks.
[...]

Aveion had his appendix removed soon after birth and recovered fully, Workman said. He needed medication after the operation, but didn't have continuing health problems, Workman said.

"He was, while fragile, not quite as medically high-maintenance as he's been made out to be," Workman said.
[...]
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/240084

Whisper

May 8th, 2010, 12:04 AM

Court records point to Brandon Lockett attempt to stonewall Aveion Lewis case
In court records, state handwriting experts accuse Brandon Lockett of “intentionally” distorting samples in the investigation into the death of his step-son, Aveion Lewis.
Lockett, along with his wife and little Aveion’s mother Morgan Lockett, are charged with second degree murder and other crimes in connection to Aveion’s death.
[...]
In forensic analysis of Brandon Lockett’s handwriting by a state expert, the expert wrote “there are limited indications Brandon Lockett wrote (i.e. it is likely)“ two ransom notes before he reported Aveion missing to police.

The same investigator also wrote “there are strong indications Morgan Lockett did not write (i.e. it is extremely unlikely) any of the questioned entries.“

The handwriting analyst also wrote Brandon Lockett “intentionally distorted” samples of his handwriting to police.

A judge denied Morgan Lockett bond once again on Friday.

She is due to deliver another child on May 26th. Her attorneys said she could deliver by cesarian section as early as next week.

The child will then live with Morgan Lockett’s mother, according to one of her attorneys.http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/court_records_point_to_brandon_lockett_attempt_to_ stonewall_aveion_lewis_ca/98764/

Tundratot

August 24th, 2010, 11:49 PM

An attorney for Brandon R'eal Lockett Sr., charged with murder along with his wife in the death of her 2-year-old son, Monday successfully blocked a prosecution expert from telling jurors the cause of Aveion Lewis' broken arm.

A forensic anthropologist hired by the prosecution to examine Aveion's body and his medical records isn't recognized as an expert in Virginia to testify about the cause of the boy's injuries, Roanoke Circuit Court Judge Clifford Weckstein said during a pretrial hearing. Weckstein said a medical doctor's testimony about Aveion's injuries will be allowed at Lockett's trial.

. . .

Brandon Lockett's defense attorney, Rachel Jackson of the city public defender's office, noted during Monday's hearing that the medical examiner did not specify the cause of Aveion's death. She questioned whether prosecution experts could bring more than "inflammatory comments and speculation" to the case.

Jackson objected to a forensic anthropologist's report that said a broken arm Aveion suffered weeks before he died was uncommon at his age unless caused by abuse.

Morgan Lockett's attorneys have said that she did not know about her son's broken arm and that Brandon Lockett cared for the children while she worked.

. . .

Weckstein said courts usually allow only medical doctors to testify what caused an injury. He said he would bar the forensic anthropologist's report and testimony. But the judge said the doctor who examined Aveion's body and medical records could tell jurors about possible causes of the boy's injuries.

Jackson said she would soon ask the court to pay for defense experts. . . . http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/257918

So, forensic experts don't qualify as medical doctors? Only medical doctors have the expertise to answer the questions? I anticipate that the medical doctors are going to defer to the forensic experts via some kind of statement like "Studies by forensic experts show . . . "

If these experts aren't allowed, I have to wonder just whom the defense will be allowed to hire.

Dakota Valkyrie

September 1st, 2010, 06:19 PM

Morgan Elizabeth Ward Lockett was so abused by her husband she may not have been able to form the intent to kill her son Aveion Lewis that the law says is necessary to sustain the murder charge against her, one of her lawyers said today.

Court-appointed defense attorney Tommy Strelka asked Roanoke Circuit Court Judge Clifford Weckstein to approve money for a psychologist to evaluate Lockett. Strelka said he needed to explore the effects of physical and mental abuse on his client and gain a better understanding of life in the Lockett household in Southeast Roanoke before 2-year-old Aveion's death in January.
[...]

Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Sandra Workman protested Stelka's request for a psychological evaluation, saying it sounded like the lawyer was trying to mount an insanity defense. Virginia law requires defense lawyers to announce an insanity defense and to share psychological evaluations with prosecutors.

Weckstein asked if Strelka was trying to raise a "Trojan Horse insanity defense." Strelka denied it, but Weckstein rejected the motion for money for a psychological evaulation. The judge said Strelka could raise the request later if he had more arguments. The judge did agree to put more money to an already-approved request for an investigator to help interview witnesses and search records.
[...]

Outside the courtroom, Strelka didn't elaborate on the abuse except to say that Brandon Lockett "controlled every aspect of their lives."
[...]

Morgan Lockett's trial had been scheduled for late October but Weckstein said that next week he would set a new date to give the defense more time to prepare its case. No trial date is scheduled for Brandon Lockett.
http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/258958

Dakota Valkyrie

February 10th, 2011, 11:24 AM

A hearing was held yesterday.

Aveion Lewis, the 2-year-old boy found dead last year in a landfill, clearly had been neglected and abused, Roanoke prosecutors say.

The cause of his death, however, is not so clear.

At a hearing Wednesday in Roanoke Circuit Court, prosecutors conceded they don't have medical proof of exactly what kind of injury killed the boy. But they don't need that to press murder charges against his stepfather, Brandon Lockett, and his mother, Morgan Lockett, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Sandra Workman said.

"The cause of death ultimately is for the jury to decide," Workman said. "We don't intend to invade the province of the jury by saying that Aveion died of X."

Part of the uncertainty is caused by the fact that half of the toddler's head was missing :eek: when his decomposing body was found Jan. 27, 2010, in the Roanoke County landfill, two weeks after he was reported missing from his Southeast Roanoke home.

Forensic details about the case emerged Wednesday after Brandon Lockett's attorney, assistant public defender Rachel Jackson, asked Judge Clifford Weckstein to limit or prohibit the testimony of Dr. Robin Foster, an expert witness for the commonwealth.
[...]

"In this particular case, we don't have a factual determination that can be made, within reasonable medical certainty, as to what the physical cause of death was," Jackson said.

After several hours of testimony and arguments, Weckstein denied the defense motion to bar Foster's testimony -- at least at this point.
[...]

When the cases get under way -- Morgan Lockett's trial is scheduled for April; Brandon Lockett's for September -- prosecutors are expected to present more details about Aveion's injuries, which included a broken arm, and his weight loss, allegedly caused by neglect and malnutrition.

Both parents knew about Aveion's mistreatment, prosecutors contend.
[...]
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/276544

During the testimony of Pediatric Emergency Medicine Dr. Robin Foster - we learned more about the toddler's badly decomposed body.

Foster said because of that decomposition she would have a hard time determining the exact cause of the baby's death.

"It is certainly possible with the severity of malnutrition that was evident, that it could be the cause of death. But, with the absence of the brain, I don't think you can say to a degree of medical certainty that's absolutely what the primary cause of death was," testified Dr. Robin Foster of VCU Pediatric Emergency Medicine.http://articles.wdbj7.com/2011-02-09/brandon-lockett_27739840

Silvahalo

February 10th, 2011, 12:15 PM

Jackson objected to a forensic anthropologist's report that said a broken arm Aveion suffered weeks before he died was uncommon at his age unless caused by abuse.
... half of the toddler's head was missing when his decomposing body was found.PART of his head was missing, ffs! sweet jesus, I hope they hang the fuckers---wtf did they do to that sweet child?? The woman was abused, "may have not been able to form the intent to kill". OK fine, but we know she participated in the severe abuse and neglect. Unless she was mentally out of her fucking mind not able to comprehend at all, she had a part and deserves swift, severe punishment.

The more I learn just what happened to baby Aveion the more I wonder how he survived at all. It seems he lived but was not living then was killed to finally live in the Heavens.

Tundratot

March 11th, 2011, 04:44 PM

Believe me or not, the man on the other side of the jail visiting room's thick window said, there's another side to the story.

This was Brandon R'eal Lockett Sr., behind bars more than a year . . .

On Tuesday, during visiting hours at the Roanoke City Jail, Brandon Lockett said he didn't want to wait until his September trial to speak out.

"Truly and honestly we're innocent," Lockett said. "... That was our son. That wasn't someone we didn't care about."

. . .

In a half-hour conversation, Lockett seemed relaxed and sometimes indignant. He referred several times to a "serious" medical condition he said Aveion had but declined to answer questions about how the toddler died.

"Certain things I'm holding back," he said.

He also avoided discussing the account he gave police on Jan. 14, 2010, when he reported Aveion missing. . . .

"The whole thing, it was far-fetched," Lockett said of the kidnapping story. He would not say more.

Prosecutors have said Aveion suffered a broken arm and burned leg that were untreated in the final weeks of his life.

"That's a blatant lie," Lockett said.
He said he knew nothing about a broken arm until a prosecutor mentioned it at a court hearing. There was no leg burn, Lockett said. It was a rash that his parents tried to treat, he said.

. . .

Similarly, Strelka said, Morgan Lockett's state of mind should be examined. Strelka argues Morgan Lockett was abused by her husband and as a result, might not have been able to form the intent necessary for first-degree murder.

Last week, Strelka filed a new motion, asking the court to pay for a mental health expert to assist in Morgan Lockett's defense. The judge has not yet ruled on the request.

. . .

He had four brothers and sisters there, all younger than 4. Aveion was one of two children Morgan Lockett had from a previous relationship. Brandon Lockett brought one child to the marriage, he said. Together they had two more children.

A third child of the Locketts was born last year, after Aveion's death and after the couple were jailed.

Brandon Lockett said that he felt spied upon as social workers monitored the family in the months after Aveion returned from foster care. But soon, everyone seemed happy, and he thought life had returned to normal, he said.

"I feel like after he came back from foster care ... the same routine we go through with our other kids, we went through with him," Brandon Lockett said.

Morgan Lockett worked as an assistant at Hurt Park Elementary School while her husband stayed home to care for the children. Brandon Lockett said he was taking paralegal courses online and tried to work in an hour or so of class during the day while the kids watched television shows such as "Hip Hop Harry."

Then, after Morgan Lockett came home, the family had dinner. The parents played with the children and got them to bed. Brandon Lockett said he would return to online classes while his wife finished her own work.

The other children thrived, Brandon Lockett said. But Aveion had problems. . . .

"He was a great kid. He did everything like a normal child would do. He just wasn't gaining weight," Brandon Lockett said.

Brandon Lockett moved in with Morgan Lockett in November 2007. He had met her the summer before, and had just moved to Roanoke from Georgia, where he had been on probation for cocaine possession. He also had been convicted of hitting a woman, the mother of his child, with a candlestick and, later, breaking into her house to attack a man.

He said that in December 2007, he took Aveion to a doctor.

"I had a heart to heart with the doctor, and I was adamant: A normal child is not like this," Lockett said.

He said that he learned Aveion had a medical issue that was serious for a child, and that he and Morgan Lockett tried to deal with it. But in May 2008, a complaint prompted social services to step in.

Workman said last year that Aveion's appendix was removed soon after his birth. While he required medicine, he did not have continuing health problems, she said.

Lockett said Aveion's medical issues didn't affect his personality.

"He could make you smile, he could make you laugh, he could take the bad days away," Lockett said.

Since the Locketts have been in jail, their children have been cared for by a grandmother. But Brandon Lockett said he still worries about them.

"I feel I take care of my kids better than anybody," Lockett said.

He said the children are not allowed to visit him and that he is not permitted to see his wife, who is also in the city jail. He is held in a segregation unit, where he is let out of his cell for one hour each day.

Waiting for his trial, Lockett said he does not understand how he can be charged with murder when investigators don't know Aveion's cause of death. He wonders why people think he and Morgan would single out one of their children for harm. He has started writing a book about his experiences and has finished more than 60 pages, he said.

"I've been portrayed as a monster, as an individual who did this to his child," Lockett said. "... But there's two sides to this story."http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/279489

Well, I guess he had to avoid discussing the merits of the case per his lawyer's instructions, but I am amazed at his naivete. How can people blame them? How can people believe they would single out one child? Really!!!

Tundratot

May 3rd, 2011, 01:16 AM

Public mention of an additional adult present on the day Aveion disappeared is a new angle in a case that has so far revolved around the neglect and abuse Aveion allegedly received from his stepfather, Brandon Lockett, 25, and mother, Morgan Lockett, 24.

. . .

"Dorniki Turner has confirmed she was in the location of the crime on and or around the time of the incident," the warrant said.

Turner is not charged in the case.

Turner, known as "D," told police about "certain and specific places to search and what evidence to look for," the warrant said. She knew details of the case that were not public knowledge, the warrant said. A witness, referred to in the warrant as V1 due to the person's age, said someone called "D" was involved in the events of Jan. 14, 2010, the warrant said.

The warrant seeks to allow investigators to collect DNA samples from Turner.

Conditions in the Lockett household, where there were four other children besides Aveion, all younger than 4, have emerged piecemeal in court hearings and search warrants. Investigators have said that in the days and weeks before Aveion died, he suffered a broken arm and burns to his legs that were left untreated.

Prosecutors and police have pointed to the boy's very low weight as a sign of poor treatment. He weighed 9 pounds when he was 14 months old, and the Department of Social Services placed him with foster parents. Cared for by the foster parents, Aveion's weight rose to a normal 30 pounds. He shed much of that after returning to the Locketts' home on March 31, 2009, prosecutors said.http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/285234

She was there, and if she didn't take part in the abuse, she clearly knew what was going on. The whole damned thing. I guess it was just too much trouble to save a life.

Tundratot

August 29th, 2011, 04:41 AM

Two days after he declined accused killer Brandon Lockett's request for new lawyers, Roanoke Circuit Judge Clifford Weckstein today refused to allow Lockett's defenders to quit. . . .

This week, just 12 days before Brandon Lockett's trial date, both he and his court-appointed lawyer, Rachel Jackson, spoke out in court about friction between them.

Jackson and her co-counsel, Richard West, asked to resign Wednesday, citing disagreements with their client and conflict of interest.

"It has become a situation in which we are in an adversarial relationship with our client," Jackson told Weckstein.

She said the relationship worsened after Lockett's handwritten motion, filed Monday, that objected to his lawyers' strategy. The motion also claimed the defense was "being undermined" by the prosecution. I thought that was part of the prosecution's job.

Lockett, on the witness stand Tuesday, failed to cite specific examples to support his claims. Weckstein struck down his motion but, Jackson pointed out, "He's never withdrawn those allegations." . . .

"It is no conflict of interest to have a difference of opinion between lawyers and their clients," the judge said.

Weckstein also offered words of caution to the accused: "A client can curse at his lawyers ... as long as the client understands that that's not helping him.

"It's time to get ready to try the case the right way and show your lawyers the appropriate respect and deference," Weckstein told Lockett, adding that Jackson and West had "demonstrated through what they've done in the case that they know what they're doing."
http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/297148

Ah, hahahahahahaha! Backfired, you fool!

Whisper

August 29th, 2011, 12:54 PM

Hes going to be lucky if they dont purposely blow the case and hes locked up for life(I know they legally cant,doesnt mean they wont)
If hes that much of an idiot maybe they feel the streets are safer without him

Tundratot

August 31st, 2011, 04:03 AM

Well, that didn't take long at all!

Brandon R'eal Lockett Sr. has been found guilty of second-degree murder and child abuse and neglect in Roanoke Circuit Court after pleading no contest to the charges this afternoon. . . .

Lockett will be sentenced Nov. 29, following a pre-sentencing report and a victim impact statement. http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/297440

The following contains lots of details you might not want to read, so be warned.

. . . Prosecutors laid the foundation of their case on evidence little Aveion would thrive when he was either admitted to the hospital or in the custody of a foster family, then his condition quickly diminished when in the custody of Brandon Lockett.

Aveion was born 14 weeks premature in January of 2007.

He spent the first three months of his life in the hospital before his release.

At 15 months old, prosecutors said Aveion weighed the same as a newborn, under nine pounds. This was while living with his father.

After a few weeks in the hospital, Aveion started to gain weight, up to over 11 pounds in the spring of 2008.

After six weeks in foster care, Aveion weighed over 17 pounds, reaching a weight of more than 28 pounds in the spring of 2009.

. . .

Neighbors nicknamed Aveion "the invisible man," after hardly seeing him in Brandon and Morgan Lockett's Roanoke town home.Always a bad sign when no one sees a child.

Prosecutors said other family friends described Aveion as "quiet," "stoic," and seemingly "immune to pain." This means he was already conditioned to abuse.

. . .

Prosecutors also found witnesses who claimed they found Aveion alone, in a urine soaked bed, with burns to both legs that looked something like out of the horror movies involving "Freddy Krueger."

The autopsy found those burns were second degree and also left untreated, prosecutors said.http://www2.wsls.com/news/2011/aug/30/6/brandon-lockett-enter-plea-aveion-lewis-death-case-ar-1274355/

. . . Among the details Workman listed for the court:

-- An examination Aveion Lewis' body showed he had "no fat whatsoever," no food in his body and weighed less than 20 pounds, a significant decrease from his previous examination weight of 28 pounds. "Such a weight loss was sufficient to cause death," Workman told the court.

-- Further examination of Aveion's body revealed a broken arm that occurred sometime during the last month of his life but went untreated. His remains also showed untreated second-degree burns on his legs; bruises that appeared to have come from being grabbed; a circular burn on his hand; and cuts that should've been treated with stitches but weren't.

-- Workman said the father of a babysitter who worked for the Locketts before Aveion's death was called to their house by his daughter because she was concerned with the boy's condition. The father told investigators the untreated second-degree burns on the back of Aveion's legs looked "like Freddy Krueger." Workman said Aveion slept on an uncovered mattress that was soaked with urine.

-- Investigators discovered a "practice ransom note" under the sofa at the Lockett residence.http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/297440

Too bad the death penalty is not on the table. He faces up to 50 years -- I hope he gets every one of them, and maybe some more for other charges.

Tundratot

October 13th, 2011, 02:52 AM

Lockett covered her face with both hands as [Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Sandra] Workman described her as a mother who once told Aveion's father that their son "cried a lot, just to get on her nerves," who lifted the small child by his upper arms despite warnings not to, and who directed her husband, Brandon Lockett, to punish the toddler with a belt for soiling a diaper. . . .

"Evidence is going to show that she was dominated by her husband and submitted to his demands," [Defense attorney Correy] Diviney continued.

Morgan Lockett was in the hospital with a kidney infection when social services representatives visited Aveion in 2008, became concerned and seized the toddler, against Brandon Lockett's resistance, Diviney said.

Diviney said Aveion's physical condition improved when he was in foster care, but told jurors that Morgan Lockett loved her son.

"Instead of taking the easy route, she did everything she could to get him back," including attending hearings and undergoing medical examinations, efforts that brought Aveion back into her custody in 2009. . . .
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/299575
Morgan Lockett said she was unaware of her 2-year-old son’s broken arm, scars across his buttocks or burns on his legs -– including a wound that investigators said appeared to have come from a lighted cigarette, according to her recorded interview with police. . . . Of course she was.

“I knew he had hurt his arm, but I didn’t know it was broken or fractured,” Morgan Lockett tells police on the recording. She said Aveion had fallen from a swing set, but said she saw no swelling or discoloration.

“He just wouldn’t use it for a couple of days,” Lockett said. “He cried at first, but after that he didn’t cry.”For a couple of days . . . nothing unusual about that, right?

An investigator said on the recording that Aveion's arm “was broken mid-shaft, a spiral fracture,” indicating abuse.

Lockett also addressed questions about burns on the backs of Aveion’s legs, which had so disturbed a babysitter that she called her parents who, in turn, called the Locketts. Willoughby told Lockett the babysitter’s father had asked Aveion whether the second-degree burns were hurting him and said the child answered, “Yes.”

“Aveion says ‘yes’ to everything,” Lockett said on the recording. She challenged her neighbors’ concern, saying, “They take their children to the doctor every time there’s an issue. I wasn’t raised like that.” . . . Yeah, see, going to the doctor is a sign of weakness. We just toughed it out.

http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/299600

Sickening bitch.

Tundratot

October 15th, 2011, 03:26 AM

Marty Harmon, a social services worker, told jurors in Roanoke Circuit Court she went to the Lockett home after a caseworker raised concerns in May 2008.

"I was startled by his size," Harmon said of Aveion, 15 months old at the time but weighing just 8 pounds. "He looked like a child you'd see on TV from Ethiopia."
http://i53.tinypic.com/mx258i.jpg
Tanya Holmes, a case manager for Child Health Investment Partnership of Roanoke Valley, a health care provider for low-income families, testified that she notified social services after becoming disturbed by her visits to the Lockett home over the previous year.

Holmes told jurors Lockett was "very affectionate and loving" with her older daughter, Gabrielle Lewis, but said, "With Aveion, it was like she didn't bond with him."

Holmes said that from 2007 into 2008, Lockett missed health care appointments, left Aveion for extended periods in an Exersaucer baby seat that didn't allow his feet to touch the ground, and put water and applesauce in his baby bottle instead of formula. She said the toddler stayed skinny and became increasingly lethargic.

Lisa Uherick, an emergency room pediatric physician with Carilion Clinic, testified that when social services brought Aveion from his home to the hospital, "his head was proportionally larger than his body." . . .

"He was unable to sit up on his own," recalled Jeffrey Yopp, a Roanoke County firefighter who, with his wife, Michelle, fostered Aveion for almost a year afterward. "When he would cry, it was almost like a whimper. He didn't like to be touched."

Yopp testified he and his wife bottle-fed Aveion with formula every two hours. In the weeks that followed, the toddler was able to sit up, then crawl, then walk. He became energetic and outgoing, shouting, "Hey!" to strangers as he was wheeled through stores on shopping trips, Yopp said.

When Aveion was taken to visit his mother and stepfather every other week, Yopp testified, both Brandon Lockett and Morgan Lockett told him the child "looked fat.". . .

The following month [after Aveion's return to her home], Morgan Lockett stopped allowing visits from CHIP representatives, Holmes testified. . . .

Investigators showed jurors the child's small mattress taken from Aveion's bedroom. It was marked with red stains and a large section was torn from its top side.

"There was an overpowering urine smell in the room," FBI analyst Glen Dale McGaha testified. "My feet stuck to the floor."

McGaha said Aveion's bed was bare when they entered the room, with no pillow, no sheet and no covers. The bed frame had red stains on it and other investigators testified that there were red stains on the floor, beside a toy police car. . . .

http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/299690

I can't believe that the CHIP allowed the Lockett's to refuse to let them see Aveion. What a travesty. A baby is near death with starvation. Upon returning him home those parents would -- should -- have to live with the expectancy that I'd drop by in the night, without any warning at any time at all, and I'd be damned if they'd be allowed to refuse.

Dakota Valkyrie

October 15th, 2011, 06:31 AM

Also from the article TT posted:

http://i53.tinypic.com/mx258i.jpg http://i0.simplest-image-hosting.net/168bf183b2abe8bc9188aacc163dd507/20111015-01.jpg

A photo taken of Aveion after he was removed from his mother's care and another a few months later.

both Brandon Lockett and Morgan Lockett told him the child "looked fat."
At least he was healthy "fat". You want to bet those shitheads thought the distended belly of a starving baby was also "fat" and did even more to limit his food?

Tundratot

October 15th, 2011, 11:00 PM

[Aurelia] Allen [a neighbor] was brimming with the same questions many people had. "I kept bringing it up," she told a jury in Roanoke Circuit Court on Friday.

"What do you think happened? What's going on? Where is he? Did he tell you anything?"

Morgan Lockett was reluctant to talk, Allen said, but eventually offered this observation:

"She just said only Brandon and God know what happened," Allen told the jury. . . .

A medical examiner who conducted an autopsy is expected to testify Monday.

Prosecutors had hoped to use the testimony of a forensic anthropologist, who worked with the medical examiner's office on the case, to establish that a fracture to Aveion's left arm had happened from one to four weeks before his death.

But after defense attorneys questioned Donna Boyd's credentials to testify as an expert witness, Weckstein ruled that she could not give an opinion on the age of the fracture. . . .

http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/299743

I don't think that Allen's testimony amounts to much, unfortunately, except perhaps to plant a seed of an idea that Aveion was hurt and not kidnapped.

princessgrandma

October 17th, 2011, 08:04 PM

I hadn't seen this one before but when I read about the "ransom note" addressed to someone else, it made me think of Elisa Baker and the note that was found on one of the Bakers' vehicles, which turns out was written by Elisa herself. It makes you wonder where people get these ideas.

This was just an all around sad story. It's like the deck was stacked against the little one from the start. I can't see how, with the history they had, that they could be able to refuse to have the CHIP come in.

Tundratot

October 18th, 2011, 02:01 AM

The judge in Morgan Lockett’s murder and child abuse trial dropped the first-degree murder charge and ruled the case will proceed with a second-degree murder charge.

Roanoke Circuit Court jurors today heard testimony from Dr. Christina Roberts, former assistant chief medical examiner, who said the amount of weight lost by Lockett's son, 2-year-old Aveion Lewis, in the last months of his life “could potentially be fatal.”

But after hearing arguments from the defense and counter-arguments from prosecutors, Judge Clifford Weckstein said Roberts “could not exclude other causes of death.”

Because of the condition of Aveion’s body when it was recovered by investigators in a Roanoke County landfill, the cause of his death was never determined.

“Were the jury to return a verdict of guilt of first-degree murder, it would be based on Dr. Robert’s testimony,” Weckstein said. . . .

The maximum penalty for second-degree murder is 40 years in prison. http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/299816

Dakota Valkyrie

October 18th, 2011, 07:48 AM

The judge in Morgan Lockett’s murder and child abuse trial dropped the first-degree murder charge and ruled the case will proceed with a second-degree murder charge.
As much as I hate to see that happen, if they can't nail her for first degree there is little other choice. It would suck for them to go for it and fail. A second degree conviction isn't ideal but far better than an acquittal.

Dakota Valkyrie

October 18th, 2011, 04:21 PM

She takes a plea agreement!

http://i0.simplest-image-hosting.net/168bf183b2abe8bc9188aacc163dd507/20111018-15.jpg
Tuesday morning, the prosecution and defense announced Morgan had entered into a plea agreement. According to the agreement, Lockett entered no contest, meaning she admits the Commonwealth has enough evidence to convict her.

Under the deal, a charge of child endangerment will be dropped. Morgan's husband, Brandon Lockett also entered also entered a plea of no contest earlier this summer.
[...]

Morgan Lockett is scheduled to be sentenced on January 4. She faces up to 50 years in prison.http://www.wtvr.com/news/wdbj7-trial-begins-tuesday-for-woman-accused-of-starving-child-20111011,0,7635117.story

Tundratot

October 19th, 2011, 04:22 AM

Convicted of killing his stepson Aveion Lewis, Brandon Lockett says in a letter from jail he is innocent and wants to withdraw a no contest plea to defend himself in a trial.

Writing from the Roanoke City Jail, where he has been held since January 2010, Lockett said he pleaded no contest to a second-degree murder charge about six weeks ago because he thought a murder charge against his wife, Morgan Lockett, would be dropped. . . .

Brandon Lockett wrote in his letter that he is innocent of Aveion's death, but felt pressured by his attorneys from the Roanoke public defender's office to make a plea agreement. He wrote that his attorneys would not call his wife as a witness for his defense and did not want to represent him. And who can blame them, if that were true? . . .

Lockett wrote that he now wants to represent himself at a trial. . . .

http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/299856

Getting bored in prison? Nothing better to do that hang in the law library?

Tundratot

November 10th, 2011, 05:39 AM

Roanoke Circuit Court Judge Clifford Weckstein at a Tuesday hearing said he would further consider a request by Brandon Lockett, who in August pleaded no contest to a second-degree murder charge and was convicted of killing his 2-year-old stepson, Aveion Lewis, in 2010.

Lockett's handwritten motion, filed in October without the knowledge of his defense attorneys, asked Weckstein to let him withdraw his plea and defend himself in a trial.

Weckstein didn't say when he will rule. . . .

Brandon Lockett, 25, wearing green-and-white striped prison coveralls and clutching a bundle of papers, answered questions from the judge for about an hour. . . .

Weckstein reminded Lockett that, at his Aug. 30 plea hearing, they had discussed at length the consequences of pleading no contest — including Lockett's waiver of his right to a trial by jury.

"When you said yes, what were you thinking?" Weckstein asked.

"I was put into a situation where I felt I had to take this plea," Lockett testified, adding that his attorney Richard West had told him if he didn't take the agreement the day it was offered, prosecutors would pursue a first-degree murder charge.

"You understand if your pleas are withdrawn, the commonwealth's attorney can reinstate the first-degree murder charge," as well as other charges that were previously dismissed, Weckstein asked.

"At the time, I wanted everything to be over with," Lockett told him. "I can't just sit down and let it go lightly.

"Let 12 people decide."

Lockett also claimed he had expected — but had not been promised — that his plea would cause the charges against his wife to be dropped. He said he hadn't realized that he couldn't be convicted simply because of incriminating statements he made to police, and he questioned the way in which his mail was being handled while he was in jail. . . .
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/300866

Dakota Valkyrie

November 10th, 2011, 06:18 AM

Lockett's handwritten motion, filed in October without the knowledge of his defense attorneys, asked Weckstein to let him withdraw his plea and defend himself in a trial.
The man is a idiot and insists on it being proven legally.

badfish76

November 10th, 2011, 10:42 AM

Only a fool has himself for a client.

Tundratot

November 22nd, 2011, 01:28 AM

The foster mother speaks out. Video at link.

ROANOKE, VA --

At 15 months old in May of 2008, and weighing the same as a newborn, eight pounds, authorities took a memorable picture of Aveion Lewis while he was being cared for at a Roanoke daycare. . . .

Aveion's foster mother, Michelle Yopp, took a picture of him seven hours after taking him home.
"He actually scared me,” Yopp said. “Here they are handing me this child that isn't mine that was literally knocking on death's door at the time." . . .

"We started him out feeding him two ounces every two hours. Otherwise it was just projectile vomit everywhere because his stomach just couldn't hold it,” she said.
The plan was simple, since Aveion looked like an infant; treat him like one.
And the plan worked.
Yopp said Aveion's strength came back a few weeks into foster care.
A few more weeks and the boy who couldn't hold his head up at 15 months old was sitting up on his own.
"His favorite thing in the whole wide world was gravy biscuits. He could eat you out of house and home with those,” Yopp said. . . .

It was in Green Hill Park in Salem where Michelle Yopp took some of the last photographs ever taken of Aveion Lewis. By then it was the spring of 2009; Aveion weighed nearly 30 pounds. And just a few days later Yopp says a home health care agency working to transition Aveion back into the home of Brandon and Morgan Lockett, took him from her for good."
"My husband at the time took him out of my arms with Aveion screaming and reaching for me screaming saying 'No... Mommy... No!' He has no choice but to take him and put him in the car like that. And Aveion was screaming and kicking and literally fighting all the way." . . .

Yopp said Brandon Lockett tried to be intimidating but she said she wasn't about to back down--- for Aveion’s sake.

"It got into a very heated discussion. He did bail up... But again; that should have been a red flag.

And I wasn't going to give him the opportunity or the satisfaction of the fight or the argument."

A near fight between a foster parent and a step father--- Yopp says it should've been a red flag; one of many she claims the system missed.

"His had so many red flags that were being thrown." Yopp said.

Like Brandon Lockett's prior arrest in Georgia, Yopp said--- for family violence.

Yopp said she found that information on the internet.

"If he's wanted in Georgia, and he fled the state to come up here because of warrants for domestic violence, why would you put the child back in the home with him?" . . .

In an order from Roanoke city juvenile and domestic relations judge Joseph Clarke, dated September 19th, 2009, the final order returning Aveion to Morgan Lockett, DSS requested that Aveion Morgan Lockett make sure and take Aveion to all his doctor’s appointments, but there was not a mechanism set up to check. . . .

"It's a good thing that I'm not a judge or the commonwealth's attorney,” Yopp said. “Because I would file charges against social services; I would also file charges against the guardian ad litum, and unfortunately the judge."

Yet Conlin said one phone call might've saved Aveion's life.

One phone call from a neighbor who told jurors in the Morgan Lockett trial he heard Brandon Lockett beat the boy severely.

One phone call from a babysitter, or her family, who found second degree burns all over Aveion's legs.

A single phone call and Conlin said DSS could've been back in the Locketts home. . . .

http://www2.wsls.com/news/2011/nov/21/aveion-lewiss-foster-mother-speaks-ar-1475442/

Tundratot

December 1st, 2011, 11:07 PM

The man charged with starving his 2-year-old stepson to death won't be allowed to take back a plea deal.

Brandon Lockett made the request earlier this month. On Tuesday a judge denied Lockett's request to have his plea rescinded. . . .

Lockett also wanted to drop his court-appointed lawyers. It was possible Lockett could have defended himself and he said his defense would have been to refute expert testimony and cite a lack of evidence in the case. The judge disagreed.

"Mr. Lockett's concept that a defense exists is not based in reality," he said.LOL!

The child's foster father says all that's left is sentencing and then this saga may finally be over.http://www.wdbj7.com/news/wdbj7-man-accused-of-starving-child-to-death-in-roanoke-courtroom-tuesday-20111129,0,3724256.story

http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/301740

Tundratot

December 16th, 2011, 05:38 PM

ROANOKE, VA -- Between April and September of 2009, Roanoke’s Department of Social Services (DSS) and the court system put Aveion Lewis back in the home of Brandon and Morgan Lockett on a six month trial basis.

In May 2008, DSS obtained a court order to place Aveion with a foster family due to his failure to thrive with the Locketts, primarily citing the fact that Aveion was dangerously underweight. . . .

During the trial placement, Roanoke Department of Social Services director, Jane Conlin, said the Locketts did everything they needed to do in order to get Aveion back; that no one ever contacted DSS with any concerns about Aveion’s well being.

Aveion’s Child Health Investment Partnership (CHIP) records, obtained by 10 On Your Side, tell a different story. We obtained the file through anonymous sources.

The file contains records of multiple contacts the agency had with the boy and the Department of Social Services for a time period including more than one before Aveion’s death.

The file reveals a CHIP case worker expressed concerns to DSS from the first day of Aveion’s trial placement with the Locketts in April 2009; complained of Morgan Lockett’s refusal to allow the agency to see Aveion; and at one time, claims she told a DSS worker about her worry that Aveion was losing weight again.

On April 1, 2009, the CHIP case manager wrote she expressed concerns to DSS worker Peter Cardillo, the main social services worker handling Aveion’s case at that time. She wrote that Cardillo told her the Locketts would “regain custody.”

On May 18, 2009, the CHIP case agent recorded Morgan Lockett refused to sign consent forms allowing CHIP in the home. She also made notation that when her supervisor threatened to call DSS on the Locketts, Brandon Lockett said he wasn’t signing anything “and did not care what that might mean to the courts.”

The case manager wrote in her notes for that day that she called Cardillo who told her he would take care of getting the Locketts to sign the consent forms.

On June 15, 2009, the CHIP case agent wrote that she still didn’t have the consent forms necessary to enter the Locketts’ home.

In her notes for that day, she recorded she called Cardillo and left a message.

On July 13, 2009, the CHIP case manager called DSS explaining that the Locketts were once again uncooperative, expressing her concerns again.

She wrote that Cardillo told her he would be leaving social services; that his supervisor, Shelby Stuart, would be taking over Aveion’s case, and that the Locketts would be getting custody of Aveion “no matter what.”

August 18, 2009, is recorded as CHIP’s last visit inside the Locketts’ home.

The CHIP case agent wrote that Stuart attended this meeting with her.

The CHIP case manager recorded that, early on in the visit, Brandon Lockett said “everybody knows I’m the king of this castle” and later told Stuart: “This is the last time [the CHIP case worker] comes in here.”

The CHIP case agent wrote that Stuart told Lockett it would not be the last time CHIP would be in the home; that there may be one more visit before a court hearing finalizing custody.

The CHIP employee ended the note for August 18th by writing she would follow up with Stuart to “discuss concerns” and the future of visits with the Locketts.

On September 3, 2009, the CHIP file reads that the CHIP case manager called Stuart and left a message.

On September 14, 2009, the CHIP case manager wrote that she called and asked for Stuart again, but another DSS worker told her Stuart was out on “medical leave” and that no one else could speak with her .

On September 30, 2009, the CHIP case agent recorded that, since the court had granted Morgan Lockett full custody of Aveion, Aveion was to be discharged from CHIP.

The last dated entry in the CHIP file is dated February 8, 2010, five days after investigators confirmed through an autopsy that a body found in a Roanoke County landfill in late January 2010 was that of Aveion Lewis.

In the approximately 70 line final entry, the CHIP case manager outlined much of her history with Aveion, including that the Locketts once told her they thought Aveion was too “fat” after returned from foster care; that during a supervised visit, she watched as Brandon Lockett grabbed Aveion by the shirt, pulled him backwards, and yelled at him for trying to bite his sister; and that Cardillo told her if the Locketts weren’t compliant with the CHIP program, it would be considered contempt of court.

She also wrote that Aveion didn’t appear to be the same size as when he left foster care.

The February 8th entry closed with the CHIP case manager’s disappointment with the decision to leave Aveion in the full custody of Morgan Lockett. . . .

In the longest telephone interview, which was conducted in November, Conlin started by saying categorically there were no reports in Aveion’s DSS file of suspected child maltreatment once Aveion was put back in the Locketts’ home on the trial placement, which started in April 2009 and concluded the following September.

She said her definition of a “report” would include a phone call or anonymous e-mail.

When asked about the CHIP records containing entries of phone calls and conversations where a CHIP worker expressed concerns about Aveion’s well being to DSS workers Cardillo and Stuart, Conlin said it was known at the time that CHIP and Locketts did not get along.

She said that kind of relationship effects perspective.

Conlin said, while it was possible that not every detail was recorded in Aveion’s DSS file, that everyone who worked on Aveion’s case was very good at documenting; in fact, in a later phone interview, Conlin said Aveion’s DSS file was correct. . . .

Conlin said the Locketts interacted well with every agency assigned to assist them during the trial placement with the exception of CHIP.

She said that generally outside organizations such as CHIP are not included by name in any service plan DSS submits to the court for parents to follow. . . .

Conlin said the differences between the information contained in Aveion’s CHIP file and the toddler’s DSS file were a case of “dueling files.”

Conlin’s consistent bottom line answer was that nothing in Aveion’s DSS file pointed to anyone who shared any concerns about the boy’s well being during the trial placement.

The bottom line from Aveion’s CHIP file was that his CHIP case manager noted at least half a dozen times between April and September 2009 where she either tried to express concerns about Aveion’s well being, or specifically told DSS she was worried about the boy’s safety. . . .
http://www2.wsls.com/news/2011/dec/15/2/aveion-file-tells-different-story-one-dss-ar-1547296/

It sounds like the DSS workers had a policy of ignoring the concerns of either CHIP or of the specific CHIP case manager. Who, it turns out, was right. And DSS still refuses to see any indication that they were wrong. They didn't document the CHIP worker's contacts, concerns, and made every effort to sidestep her/his calls and minimize the conflict by putting it off on the CHIP agency. Doggedly determined to put Aveion back in the hands of the "cooperative" Lockett family.

HeatherHabilatory

December 16th, 2011, 06:37 PM

Hoooooooooooly shiiiiiiiiiiit. I've never seen a picture of a kid in AMERICA looking like that. It is completely unnecessary, especially when MOM AND STEP MONSTER ARE FAT ASSES!!!

donegaveup

December 17th, 2011, 02:56 PM

Every page that turns in this story shows just how dirty and dark the story of Aveion really is. It's an outrage. I wonder how the person who TRIED so hard to be heard about Aveion's well-being has handles all of this. I can imagine sleepless guilt filled nights even though she TRIED to stand up for him. She tried to do the right thing and got shut out. How frustrating. How maddening this has had to have been for her.

I thank you for the updates Tundratot.

Aveion is one of my most favorite angels in my angel garden. His angel is especially adorable. He sits on a ball, with a huge grin on his sweet face. Even his toes are curled so genuine is his mirth. Even a heartless void of a human could not look at the Aveion Angel and not feel a tug at the old heart strings.

Jerri Blank

January 4th, 2012, 05:12 PM

Roanoke woman sentenced to 40 years in death of toddler son

ROANOKE, Va. — A 25-year-old Roanoke woman has been sentenced to 40 years in prison in her 2-year-old son's death.

A judge on Wednesday sentenced Morgan Lockett to 30 years for a second-degree murder conviction and 10 years on a child abuse conviction in the death of Aveion Lewis, according to media outlets.

He later said that his stepson had choked while eating, and that a friend disposed of the body, which later turned up in a landfill.

She pleaded no contest to the charges in October in a deal with prosecutors.

Prosecutors alleged that Lockett and her husband, Brandon Lockett, starved and neglected the child.

Brandon Lockett claimed in January 2010 that Aveion had been kidnapped. He later said that his stepson had choked while eating, and that a friend disposed of the body, which later turned up in a landfill.

Brandon Lockett pleaded no contest to second-degree murder and child abuse. He'll be sentenced Jan. 20.
http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/a683af7c3e7a48fba7f18e8f5a4ec658/VA--Slain-Toddler/

HeatherHabilatory

January 4th, 2012, 09:48 PM

It's a good start, I guess....

Tundratot

January 7th, 2012, 10:51 PM

On Wednesday, witnesses and spectators turned out for Morgan Lockett's sentencing in such force that deputies moved the proceedings to a larger courtroom.

A number of Morgan Lockett's seven brothers and sisters testified that she was a loving, caring mother whose kind nature was compromised by the appearance of Brandon Lockett. The couple met on a telephone chat line in 2006, and he later moved into her home, not long after the birth of Aveion, Morgan Lockett's son by her high school sweetheart, James Lewis.

"When Brandon came on the scene, a whole lot of things changed," said Morgan's older brother, Chris Ward. "It was a real controlling and abusive-type relationship." . . .

She denied knowledge of how Aveion had been burned and admitted she could have done more to help him. She said that when she complained about Brandon Lockett's treatment of her children, he threatened to return home to Georgia if he couldn't enforce his discipline.

She told Strelka that Aveion had been alive and well when she left for work on the morning the child disappeared and said she didn't know what had happened while she was away.

"Brandon won't tell me," she claimed. "He's got to know, because he threw him [Aveion] in the trash like a piece of garbage."

Morgan Lockett apologized for the cost of the search and for the emotional toll on those connected to the case.

"I'm sorry for your pain. I know what it feels like, because I have pain, too," she said through tears. "I'm sorry for failing him."

Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Sheri Jones questioned Lockett about the differences between Aveion and her other children, asking why Aveion repeatedly missed doctors' appointments while the others got regular checkups, and whether the child was stubborn, or pickier in his appetites, or slower at potty training and at learning to chew food.

"He took more effort?" Jones suggested.

"Each child is different," Lockett replied.

"He had a broken arm, burns on both legs, lost one-third of his body weight," Jones added. "Would you say that makes him different?"

Jones also suggested that the boy's emaciated condition on the day he disappeared was far more serious than Lockett had admitted. She presented to Lockett first a snapshot of Aveion not long after he was returned from foster care, at a normal weight. Then she gave Lockett a medical examiner's photograph of the toddler's body. His ribs were visible through his skin.

"I don't want to see that," Lockett said, turning her head and shutting her eyes. "No. Please take that picture away."

In closing arguments, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Sandra Workman argued that Aveion's drastic weight loss hadn't occurred just the afternoon he disappeared.

"It happened over time," Workman said, adding that Morgan Lockett "was not an innocent bystander. She was an active partner."

She also pointed to what she said was Brandon Lockett's lack of physical violence against his wife.

"His only threat was, he was going to leave her," she said. "She never once — in all those injuries and all that time it took that child to die — sought help. She is not the victim. Aveion Lewis is the victim."

Defense attorney Correy Diviney said that with Morgan Lockett's plea, she had acknowledged partial responsibility.

"For the rest of her life, she's going to be branded a monster. And yet, Morgan Lockett isn't a monster," he said. "Her crime is a crime of omission."

In a final statement to the judge, Lockett struck a tone that verged on defiant.

"I don't play the role of a victim because I am not a victim. Over the last two years, I had a chance to grow a backbone," she said.

"I apologize for my part in this, but I did not kill my son."

Weckstein sentenced Lockett to 30 years for second-degree murder and 10 years for the child abuse charge, with the terms to run consecutively. Upon release, she will be on probation for 15 years and will be restricted from contact with children, he ruled.

Morgan Lockett's plea deal was struck immediately after Weckstein threw out a first-degree murder charge against her in October, eliminating the possibility of a life sentence. The judge had cited the medical examiner's inability to prove the exact cause of Aveion's death, and at least one juror later said that while he was shocked by the evidence, he didn't believe it was sufficient to prove murder.

http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/303123

Monsters are better mothers than Morgan Lockett. She may get out of prison before she dies, but she'll be menopausal by then.