JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Brianna Williams appeared briefly in court Wednesday morning on charges of aggravated child abuse, tampering with evidence, child neglect and lying to police.
The case is in connection with the disappearance and death of her daughter Taylor.
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Williams, 29, faces multiple charges related to the alleged abuse of her 5-year-old daughter. She is also accused of evidence tampering and giving false information to law enforcement. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
More than two years after her arrest, a trial date has still not been set. The defense told the judge Wednesday it is still going through depositions. Williams did not speak in court Wednesday.
The 5-year-old girl’s remains were found Nov. 12, 2019, in a wooded area of Marengo County in rural Alabama, six days after her mother, a former Navy Petty Officer First Class at NAS Jacksonville, reported her missing to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
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Court documents filed by the State Attorney’s Office accuse Williams of torturing, maliciously punishing or caging her daughter sometime between the last time the girl was seen alive in April 2019 and Nov. 6, 2019, when the girl was reported missing.
Evidence released in the case as part of discovery suggests investigators found possible bloodstains in six places in the family’s apartment, including the interior of a closet. Investigators said they found soiled children’s clothes, fecal matter and soup cans with small openings.
Also inside the apartment, investigators said they found the scent of decay, similar to the scent they said was noticeable in the trunk of Williams’ Honda Accord. Inside the vehicle, court documents say, investigators also found maggots, fecal matter and soiled clothes.
Williams faces the tampering charge because investigators suspect the girl’s body was dumped in Alabama before Williams reported her missing. Records show Williams posted a Craigslist ad seeking help moving out of her apartment hours after she returned from Alabama.
Williams’ next court appearance is Jan. 12, 2022.