Authorities in Florida have released body camera footage of a police officer interviewing a "devastated" military mother.
She reported her five-year-old daughter missing, just a week before the child’s decomposed body was found buried in rural Alabama.
The mother, 28-year-old Naval Petty Officer 1st Class Brianna Williams, was later charged with child neglect, aggravated child abuse, giving false information to the police, and tampering with evidence.
These charges were related to the death of her daughter, Taylor Rose Williams, whom she murdered and then falsely claimed was missing.
An autopsy report revealed that by the time Taylor’s body was found on November 12, 2019, she had probably been dead for one to six months.
Her remains, which had been eaten by animals supported this time frame.
Some evidence suggested neglect or a serious illness, but they couldn’t determine the exact cause of death.
Court records allege that Brianna intentionally tortured, cruelly punished, or locked Taylor up.
This is said to have happened between the last time the girl was seen in April 2019 and when her mother reported her missing 6 months later
She was also accused of destroying or removing evidence and moving human remains.
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| Taylor Rose Williams |
Body Cam Footage and Cover-Up Details
The sheriff's office in Jacksonville County shared a video that showed Brianna Williams talking to a police officer for the first time.
In the video, she is seen crying outside her home in Jacksonville on November 6, 2019.
The mother, dressed in her Navy uniform, shakes and weeps as she tells the responding officer how she woke up to find her daughter missing.
'I woke up this morning, started getting ready for work, and she wasn’t in her room,' Williams says through sobs.
'Have you had any problems with anybody?' the officer asks, to which Williams shakes her head and replies 'no.'
The officer asks the mother several questions, like whether her daughter had tried to run away before or if she was on any medications.
As the interview goes on, Williams gives conflicting information about when she moved into the Brentwood home.
She said she moved in either two days ago or a week ago but she wasn't sure of the exaxt date.
In a second interview with a different officer, Williams said she moved into the home either in June or on July 4.
She also said her daughter moved in with her in October after staying with her grandmother in Alabama.
While talking to the first officer who arrived, Williams showed him the unlocked outside door that she said was left open.
She mentioned she last saw Taylor around midnight when she tucked her in.
She described the five-year-old as wearing a pink-and-purple T-shirt and pajama bottoms.
The police officer then contacted a sergeant, who instructed him to search the house for the missing child.
But Taylor was nowhere to be found.
Her disappearance led to a massive search across two states with help from police and volunteers.
Williams stopped cooperating with detectives after they asked her about the inconsistencies in her story.
Data from Williams' cellphone eventually led officials to Demopolis, Alabama, where she grew up.
There, on November 12, 2019, they found Taylor's remains in a wooded area near the city.
Williams was said to have attempted suicide by overdosing on pills on the same day her daughter's remains were discovered.
However, she survived and was arrested.
Reports showed the girl last went to daycare in April 2019, months before she went missing.
Her grandparents also said they hadn’t seen her in over a year.
A neighbor said that before she disappeared, Taylor was often seen wandering alone around the apartment complex where she lived with her mother.
The neighbour said she was always wearing the same purple-and-pink pajamas she wore the last day she was seen.
No one appeared to have seen Taylor in the months leading up to her mother's reporting her missing.
According to reports, Williams' car smelled like decomposition and had been completely cleaned with chemicals.
Meanwhile, her apartment was said to have been 'in disarray with a strong odor of feces and urine'.
Feces and urine were found in a closet, while a stained piece of carpet, which had a chunk removed, was also discovered on site.
Suspected bloodstains were observed in six locations throughout the apartment, reported News4Jax.
Trial and Sentence
The court trial of Brianna Williams uncovered more troubling details regarding the case.
It was discovered that her child died because of neglect.
When she found her dead, Brianna secretly hid the child's body in the trunk of her car, and drove to Alabama and buried her in a makeshift grave.
After that, she falsely reported the child as missing.
A psychologist who evaluated her said that Williams seemed anxious and depressed.
He said she also showed signs of schizophrenia and mood disorders.
According to the judge, the victim was not valued from the time of conception by either her father or mother.
The victim had been in child care all along, but the defendant took the victim out of child care about four months before the victim died.
After that, Taylor remained home alone and unprovided for throughout that time leading to her death.
In her final statements, Williams said she knew what she did was wrong, admitting that she "lied and lied some more" about what happened.
"I failed as a mother, a protector, and as a decent human being," the statement read. "... and I didn't take advantage of any timely opportunity to right my wrongs. I apologize to everyone affected by this tragedy. I am punished every day since losing my baby."
Although she was initially charged with child neglect and abuse, she later pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.
Calling it "a tragedy all around," Circuit Court Judge Kevin Blazs sentenced Williams to life in prison
In sentencing Willams to life, "I wanted to ensure that the community is protected and that the decision is rendered in a way that does not dishonor the death of Tayor Rose," the judge said.
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