Please see references for more details about the timeline of events in the Aiden Fucci case.
May 7, 2021
Food Truck Friday- A friend’s parent drove Tristyn Bailey (TB) and classmates to the Durbin Crossing Food Truck Friday event.
May 8, 2021
Home for the Night
11:45 p.m.-The Bailey family returned home from dinner and TB watched tv with her brother until he excused himself for bed.
May 9, 2021
Last Seen
12:15 a.m.- Surveillance cameras from the neighborhood showed TB walking with Aiden Fucci (AF).
1:15 a.m.- The same survellience cameras captured AF running in the opposite direction while holding his shoes.
Missing
10:00 a.m.- TB’s family reported her missing on Mother’s Day morning after finding she was not in her room to celebrate with the rest of her family.
1:59 p.m.- St. John’s County Sheriff’s Office announced they were searching for TB-
The St. John’s County Sheriff’s Office is currently seeking the whereabouts of a missing child who was reported missing earlier this morning by family. The individual has been identified as Tristyn Bailey who is a 13-year-old white female. She was last seen early this morning around 1:15AM at the Durbin Amenity Center in northwest St. John’s County.
Last Seen: 1:15AM around the Durbin Amenity Center
Last seen wearing: a white cheerleading skirt and dark colored shirt
If you have any information about the current whereabouts or have seen Tristyn, please contact your nearest local law enforcement agency or call SJSO at (redacted) or by calling (redacted).
4:54 p.m.- Florida Department of Law enforcement issued an alert for TB.
Found
May 10, 2021
Suspect Arrested
11:39 a.m.-AF was arrested and posted a Snapchat in the back of the police car. The Snapchat read “You seen Tristyn lately?” He was initially charged with second-degree murder as a juvenile.
May
Police Footage– While being held for questioning footage showed AF’s demeanor toward his parents. His father was heard saying AF would have to come stay with him. The footage also captured AF saying he kissed TB that evening.
May 11, 2021
1st Court Appearance-
8:37 a.m.- AF appeared in court for the first time following his arrest. During his hearing, he was charged with second-degree murder pending the State Attorney’s decision to charge him as an adult.
12:54 p.m.- The St. John’s County Sheriff’s Office released a statement citing TB’s cause of death as sharp force trauma by stabbing.
May 17, 2021
Defense Withdrew- Anway Snober, AF’s defense, filed a motion to withdraw from the case and it was granted by the judge.
May 18, 2021
Memorial- TB’s family held a memorial service to celebrate her life. The memorial was held at Celebration Church in Jacksonville.
May 20, 2021
Indigency Approved- AF’s parents filed an indigency motion on May 18, 2021 and it was granted by the judge.
May 27, 2021
Charged as an adult- AF was originally charged with second-degree murder, however court documents showed his charge was changed to premeditated first-degree murder, which comes with an adult charge.
May 28, 2021
No Bail– Judge Henry Maltz ruled that AF would be held without bail at an adult facility in St. John’s county. Premeditated first degree murder is a capital crime that is punishable by a life-or-death sentence. Due to AF age, he cannot face the death penalty, so he only faced the maximum sentence, life in prison.
June 3, 2021
Not Guilty- AF’s attorneys entered a plea of not guilty for the charges against him.
June 5, 2021
Another Arrest- AF’s mother, Crystal Lane Smith, was arrested and charged with tampering with evidence.
June 25, 2021
Another Arrest- The State Attorney’s Office released a list of 154 potential witnesses during the discovery process.
July 14, 2021
Premeditated- Further discovery revealed testimony from AF’s friends who said that he talked about killing people and planned to drag a random person into the woods and kill them.
July 23, 2021
Crystal Lane Smith Enters Plea- Smith entered a written plea of not guilty for her June 5 arrest pertaining to tampering with evidence in the trial.
August 25, 2021
Surveillance Footage Released- Footage from AF’s home showed Smith, his mother cleaning his jeans. The Snapchat videos and other items were also introduced to evidence.
September 1, 2021
Court Appearance- During his court appearance AF appeared confused and was seen looking around the screen muttering things.
October 28, 2021
Continuance Granted- A continuance until February 2, 2022 was granted.
February 2, 2022
Pretrial Hearing- During the pretrial hearing, the trial was set for November.
April 5, 2022
New Public Defender- Rosemarie Peoples was assigned as AF’s new public defender during a pretrial hearing to set the calendar for November 7-18.
June 28, 2022
New Motions Filed- New motions on behalf of AF asked the judge not to allow cameras during the jury selection process.
June 30, 2022
Emails Released- The state released emails that support their notion of premeditation.
July 25, 2022
Trial Delay- AF’s attorneys filed new motions in an attempt to delay the November hearing.
August 5, 2022
Request to Move Trial- The defense asked the judge for more time to gather witness testimonies, but the judge said he wanted to see what happened over the upcoming weeks before he agreed.
August 19, 2022
Trial Moved to February- Judge R. Lee Smith agreed to move AF’s trial.
November 21, 2022
Solitary Confinement- AF’s attorneys filed a motion to have him released from solitary confinement.
November 23, 2022
Judge Denied Motion- Judge R. Lee Smith denied the defense’s request to have AF removed from solitary confinement.
January 11, 2023
Motion to Reduce Jury Size- The defense filed a motion asking for a 6-person jury instead of a 12-person jury.
January 20, 2023
Motion Granted- Judge R. Lee Smith agreed to a six-person jury.
January 26, 2023
Trouble in Jail- Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office released a report citing fights and threats by AF while awaiting trial in jail.
February 1, 2023
Defense Asked for More Time- Another motion was filed by AF’s defense to ask for more time. Judge R. Lee Smith denied the motion.
February 6, 2023
Changed Plea- Fucci changed his plea from not guilty to guilty about one month prior to his trial start date.
March 20, 2023
Judge Reviewed Motion- The day prior to his sentencing, Judge R. Lee Smith reviewed the defenses motions pertaining to prior bad acts, but ruled he would determine their admittance on a case-by-case basis once the sentencing hearing began.
March 21, 2023
Day 1- On day 1 of his sentencing trial details were revealed about AF’s obsession with horror and gore. The Snapchat videos were also shared along with the footage of him and his parents at the police station.
March 22, 2023
Day 2- On day 2 of his sentencing hearing, Tristyn Bailey’s family and friends spoke on her behalf. During the discovery process Aiden Fucci’s friends revealed that he talked about killing people and planned to drag a random person into the woods and kill them.
March 24, 2023
Life with Parole- Aiden Fucci, who already pled guilty, thus waiving their trial, was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole in 25 years for stabbing Tristyn Bailey 114 times. Fucci will serve his sentence in a Florida prison.
Click HERE for a quick recap of the case and click HERE if you would like my unsolicited opinion on the verdict.
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