ALEXUS SMOTHERS - 8 yo - West Frankfort IL

Alexus' mother, Mary Jophlin, remains in the Franklin County jail.
She'll be back in court August 17th for a preliminary hearing.

The final results of the autopsy should be complete this week, I am wondering if additional charges will be given.

Here is a comment posted in a forum for people from Alexus' town, "THE LITTLE SISTER SAID ALEXUS CRIED NO MOMMY SEVERAL TIMES. "

So far, the mother has only been charged with concealment of a death of a child.

The little sister is safe, in the care of dcfs, but the horror that child will have to live with, hearing her sisters final words.

BENTON - A West Frankfort mother is charged with first-degree murder in the death of her 8-year-old daughter last month.

Mary Zumwalt-Jophlin, 28, is accused of drowning her daughter, Alexus Nicole Smothers, "with the use of her hands, water, another object, or a combination thereof," on or about July 19, according to an amended information filed Tuesday against her by Franklin County State's Attorney Evan Owens.

The state's attorney cited several aggravating factors, including the ages of the defendant and victim, that could lead to a sentence of natural life in prison if Zumwalt-Jophlin is convicted of first-degree murder.

The other factor, Owens wrote in the amended filing, is "that the murder was accompanied by exceptionally brutal or heinous behavior indicative of wanton cruelty."

Zumwalt-Jophlin is also charged with concealment of a homicidal death and obstructing justice. Authorities contend she knowingly concealed Smothers' death by placing her daughter's body in the basement of the family's residence at 1704 E. Oak St. in West Frankfort and then reported the child as missing, all the while knowing the child was lying dead in the basement.

A new bail amount of $2 million was set for Zumwalt-Jophlin, who has been incarcerated in Franklin County Jail since her July 19 arrest on the charge of concealing a suspicious death.

She is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at 1:30 p.m. today in Franklin County Circuit Court.

Read more: http://thesouthern.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/article_4fe2c93a-c86f-11e0-bc0d-001cc4c002e0.html#ixzz1VFMWNqDW

Marys sister says her sister is innocent, someone else killed her niece, the truth will come out.

http://thesouthern.com/news/local/article_bda594c2-c953-11e0-8b2f-001cc4c002e0.html



BENTON - Words of support were offered to the West Frankfort mother accused of drowning her 8-year-old daughter last month after the woman made a brief court appearance Wednesday in Franklin County Circuit Court.

"I love you, Mary," several friends and family members yelled as the defendant, Mary Zumwalt-Jophlin, was escorted from the courthouse.

"I love you," she responded, as she ducked her head to get into the backseat of the squad car that would take her back to Franklin County Jail, where she is detained in lieu of $2 million bond.

But family members of the little girl's father had no such words of support and said they think Zumwalt-Jophlin is rightfully facing murder charges.

Zumwalt-Jophlin, 28, is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of her daughter, Alexus Smothers, last month.

According to an amended information filed Tuesday by Franklin County State's Attorney Evan Owens, Zumwalt-Jophlin used her "hands, water, another object, or a combination thereof," to cause the drowning death of her daughter on or about July 19.

She is also charged with concealment of a homicidal death and obstructing justice. Those charges, which were filed July 21, allege Zumwalt-Jophlin placed her daughter's body in the basement of the family's house at 1704 E. Oak St. in West Frankfort and then called police to report her daughter missing, despite knowing her child was lying dead in the basement.

Zumwalt-Jophlin was scheduled for a preliminary hearing Wednesday, but because of the newly filed first-degree murder charge, her attorney, public defender Eric Dirnbeck, asked Judge Thomas Tedeschi for a continuance, which was granted.

After Zumwalt-Jophlin was taken back to jail, her sister, Jennifer Gaskin, said the truth about Smothers' death has not yet been revealed.

"I know my sister is innocent and I'm going to stand behind her until everybody knows that. I'm not going to stop until everybody knows she is innocent and all the truth does come out," she said. "Somebody else did it, most definitely."

She declined to elaborate on her accusation regarding another suspect, but did say her sister would never hurt her child.

"She loved my niece; she loved all her kids. She begs now to see her kids, just to be able to hear their voice. There is no possible way she would have killed my niece," Gaskin said.

Smothers' paternal family members, however, said they had no doubt Zumwalt-Jophlin committed the crimes of which she is accused. They declined further comment.

Zumwalt-Jophlin will be back in court for a preliminary hearing on Sept. 27.

beckymalk@gmail.com

Read more: http://thesouthern.com/news/local/article_bda594c2-c953-11e0-8b2f-001cc4c002e0.html#ixzz1VNx215Kc

Mary Jophlin Accused of Murdering Child
August 19, 2011 04:00 AM EDT

Mary Jophlin is an Illinois mother charged with murdering her
own child. However, her friends and family say she's innocent of
hurting the 8-year-old kid. Could the family be blinded by their love of
a family member, or is Mary Jophlin actually guilty of committing this senseless act?

The family members of the woman say she's been wrongfully charged
and that someone else killed her 8-year-old daughter. In fact, they say
that there have been details emerging in this case that will prove the woman's innocence.
This case began when the 8-year-old child was
found in the basement of their home after Mary reported her missing.
This occurred just days after Casey Anthony was released from jail in
Florida, so immediately people were trying to compare this death to the
death of Caylee Marie Anthony. Not long after the little girl was
discovered dead, Mary Jophlin was taken into custody and charged with murder.
Anyway, the family members say she cries all the time, and
she misses her kids while she is being held on $2 million bond for the
murder charges among others. They say there is no way she could have
killed her daughter because she went to bed that night. They claim
someone else had access to the woman's home, but they don't know who.
This isn't helping their claims of her innocence.
"My sister put her trust in a lot of people. My sister is a very trusting person. That
person came there later on, yes," said Mary's sister, Jennifer Gaskin.
It would help if the family members of the accused child murderer could
produce some more details, like what kind of people she trusted to be
alone in her home at night while her daughter slept. If they know this
woman as personally as they claim to be saying she is absolutely
innocent, then surely they must know who were allowed in and out of her
home during this time.
Until they are able to prove it, Mary sits
behind bars on suspicion that she murdered her daughter. Investigators
say that autopsy reports show drowning as the main cause of death in the
youngster, adding further suspicion toward Mary Jophlin. How'dshe wind
up in the basement? Perhaps, and this is just a theory, her daughter
drowned accidentally and she panicked. Reporting her missing instead of
dead probably seemed like a good idea at the time. Or perhaps she was
fed up with being a mom and decided to off her like so many mothers do, it seems.
---~~*~~---
©Chelsea Hoffman
is the Author of "Chloe and Louis," and the "Fear Chronicles," series
of books. She also covers a myriad of true crime stories online. Visit ChelseaHoffman.Com to follow the blog and contact Chelsea directly.

Isn't is just so typical in these cases where there has been a history of abuse and neglect, the family members are now expending their energy on defending the accused. Where were they all when Alexus and her siblings needed someone to step up to the plate for them?

kiwimom wrote:Isn't is just so typical in these cases where there has been a history of abuse and neglect, the family members are now expending their energy on defending the accused. Where were they all when Alexus and her siblings needed someone to step up to the plate for them?

I am sick to read all of this ....poor baby.....happened in my own state...

West Frankfort mother indicted in murder of her child
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THE SOUTHERN STAFF | Posted: Tuesday, September 27, 2011 10:17 am | 1 Comment
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Paul Newton / The Southern
In this file photo Mary Jophlin is led into the Franklin County Courthouse for a hearing on Wednesday, Aug. 17, in Benton.
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Mary Zumwalt-Jophlin walk 9-27-11
FRANKLIN COUNTY - A West Frankfort mother has been indicted in the July murder of her 8-year-old daughter in Franklin County.
Mary Zumwalt-Jophlin waived her right to a speedy trial and plead not guilty to the charges against her Tuesday morning. In addition to first-degree murder, Zumwalt-Jophlin also faces charges of concealment of a homicide and obstructing justice.
She was read an indictment by a Franklin County Grand Jury Tuesday in the Franklin County Courthouse in Benton.
Zumwalt-Jophlin is accused of drowning her daughter, Alexus Smothers, on or around July 19, according to the indictment.
Franklin County State's Attorney Evan Owens has said Zumwalt-Jophlin used her "hands, water, another object, or a combination thereof," to cause the drowning death of her daughter." He also alleges Zumwalt-Jophlin placed her daughter's body in the basement of the family's house at 1704 E. Oak St. in West Frankfort and called police to report her daughter missing, despite knowing her child was lying dead in the basement.
Zumwalt-Jophlin remains in jail on $2 million bond.
Becky Malkovich provided the information for this report



Read more: http://thesouthern.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/article_f9da6272-e91c-11e0-8836-001cc4c002e0.html#ixzz1ZBLXvVau

Here is a link to an article about Alexus' funeral arrangements with pictures of this adorable little girl. This is so sad--I hope justice is served for the precious little one.

http://www.kfvs12.com/story/15122618/charges-filed-against-mother-of-8-year-old-found-dead

If pictures were previously posted, they weren't showing up so I found some and wanted to post it for others.

13 - Pre-trial 11/23/2011 9:30 A.M. TBA A

http://www.judici.com/courts/cases/case_information.jsp?court=IL028015J&ocl=IL028015J,2011CF287,IL028015JL2011CF287D1