Smith v. State

Benham, Justice.

Makayla Mack was 30 months old when she died as a result of blunt-force head trauma and strangulation. Both appellant Thoma-sina Beverly Mack, Makayla’s mother, and appellant Dentario Steven Smith, appellant Mack’s boyfriend at the time the child died, were with the child during the time period within which the fatal injuries were believed to have been inflicted. In a joint trial, appellants were convicted of and sentenced to life imprisonment for the malice murder of the child.

The testimony of the deputy chief medical examiner who performed an autopsy on the child and medical…