Case of day care death expected to go to jury Thursday

Closing arguments will take place Thursday, Dec. 1, in the case of a Millsboro day care provider accused of first-degree murder in the death at her day care of a 10-month-old boy.

Attorney arguments will be followed by instructions from Delaware Superior Court Judge T. Henley Graves, after which jury deliberations are expected to begin.

Prosecutors accuse Valorie Handy, 52, of giving a boy in her care diphenhydramine, the active ingredient in the allergy medication Benadryl. The state medical examiner ruled the boy's death a homicide as a result of diphenhydramine intoxication.

Prosecutors presented nine days of testimony in the case, while defense attorneys wrapped up their case in just one day. The defense spent most of the morning calling a series of character witnesses on Handy's behalf, all attesting to her as a loving day care provider who viewed the children of Handy's Little Disciples as her own. Handy herself did not take the stand, although the prosecution had earlier played a police interview with Handy and a reenactment by her of her actions the day the boy died as part of its evidence.

The first defense witness had testified earlier for the prosecution, Detective John King of Delaware State Police. Defense attorney Gary Traynor took King through a timeline of events starting with the boy's death on Jan. 28, 2015. King said the autopsy took place the next day, but blood testing results were received in March 2015. King testified police searched Handy's home in May 2015. Traynor pointed out, however, that Handy was arrested in July 2015, before the state exhumed the boy to test his hair for diphenhydramine and before additional expert reports on what could have caused the boy's death. Handy's arrest also occurred before detectives searched the home of the boy's parents.

King was later called as a rebuttal witness for the state, testifying about the police search of the Handy home, where multiple packages of Benadryl and a generic equivalent were found. However, King said, Handy did not hide the fact that Benadryl was in the home.

Handy's husband, Bolarius, testified Benadryl found at in the Handy home belonged to him as he used it to treat allergies that caused a runny nose or skin rash. He also testified to his wife's state of mind after the boy died.

"She was heartbroken. She couldn't sleep. She done a lot of crying," he said.

Kyra Bradley, who also had testified for the prosecution earlier in the trial, was called by the defense to testify of Handy's generosity – Handy did not kick Bradley's daughter out of day care when Bradley was late on payment – and her love of the baby boy.

"She fell in love with this little baby," Bradley testified.

Bradley's mother-in-law, Phyllis Shelton, said Handy liked her job and was always good working with the children.

Previously, Bradley had testified to having brought a bottle of children's Benadryl recommended by a doctor for her daughter, who was allergic to eggs and cats. Bradley said she did not believe Handy had ever given the Benadryl to her daughter because the level of medicine in the bottle never changed. On cross-examination, prosecutor Melanie Withers said Handy accepted permission to give the Benadryl and gave Bradley's daughter children's Tylenol and Motrin, even though Handy's own policy packet stated she would not give medication.

Rebecca Lawson, who testified her two children both went to Handy's day care, said Handy never gave her children medications.

Richard Stigall, whose daughter went to Handy's, testified that Handy was good with the kids, keeping them on schedule and never losing patience with them. He said he had encountered the boy several times and described him as a happy little guy who was never fussy or in need of constant attention.

Farrah Stigall, Richard Stigall's wife, said Handy's day care felt more like a home and not like a preschool or a day care. She said the boy seemed like a normal child, always lively and alert. Stigall, a cousin of Handy's, described Handy as a talker, a comment that made Handy laugh to herself.

Stigall said she had talked to Handy about how the boy didn't take long naps at the request of his mother, who wanted the boy to sleep through the night. On cross-examination by Withers, Stigall admitted she sent Orajel – a gel made to ease the pain of teething – and children's Tylenol in her daughter's diaper bag, even though she knew Handy's own policy prevented her from administering medications.

Michelle Parker of the Delaware Parents Association testified that from her observation, Handy's children were happy and all was running smoothly.

Graves and the attorneys have been crafting jury instructions and discussing lesser charges the jury could consider against Handy. One issue of contention has been how much weight the jury should give to physical evidence collected from the day care. During motions with the jury out of the courtroom, Graves was critical of Delaware State Police detectives for collecting a stained sweater Handy was wearing the day the boy died, but not a sippy cup or food items the boy consumed prior to his death. Graves said Handy held these items up for detectives during her reenactment, and those items should have been seized for testing.