GA DECATUR JOHN DOE: BM, 4-8, found near church cemetery in Dekalb County, GA - 26 Feb 1999 *WILLIAM HAMILTON*

An unidentified deceased boy was found on February 26, 1999. His body was found in a wooded area near a small church cemetery on Clifton Springs Road in South DeKalb County, Georgia. The boy had been deceased for several months before he was found. He is estimated to have been between 4-8 years old at the time of his death in late 1998 to early 1999. He stood approximately 4’00” tall and weighed about 50 pounds. The child was found wearing a blue plaid and navy hooded sweatshirt (size XL), red denim jeans (size 3), and Timberland boots (size 11). Images of the shoes and sweatshirt are featured above. Advance forensic analysis of his teeth and bones suggest that he was born and raised in the Southeastern United States, most likely from Georgia or Florida. The images above are a facial reconstruction completed by NCMEC Forensic Artist that depicts what the child may have looked like in life.

Have you seen this child? John Doe1999

Missing From: DECATUR, GA. Missing Date: 02/26/1999. An unidentified deceased boy was found on February 26, 1999. His body was found in a wooded area near a small church cemetery on Clifton Springs Road in South DeKalb County, Georgia. The boy had been deceased for several months before he was...

api.missingkids.org

#IDENTIFIED in 2022! JohnDoe was found on February 26, 1999 near a small church cemetery on Clifton Springs Road in South DeKalb County, #GEORGIA

The boy had been deceased for several months before he was found. He is estimated to have been between 4-8 years old at the time of his death in late 1998 to early 1999.

www.crimewatchers.net

 

[Guess Who]

The shoes. The boots were new and "Timberland" brand. They are expensive.

I noticed that. The mixture of clothing here seems odd.. Sizing, prices...

This mix could very well have come from a thrift store or similar.

 

[Whatsnext]

This is William: Cold Case Solved After 23 Years

www.missingkids.org

 

[Mel70]

This is William: Cold Case Solved After 23 Years

www.missingkids.org

View attachment 15376

Wow! Evil b***h! Couldn't this have been solved earlier though?. Her different stories and him never coming back. Rest in peace William.

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Wow.
Thank you Ava for caring about William, trying to track him down, and finally calling in the tip that lead to him getting his name back.
I have to say, that latest reconstruction image was pretty good.
Rest in peace, William.

 

[GrandmaBear]

Awesome she kept at it and so happy this boy has his name.

 

[Kimster]

That’s an incredible story about how one person makes all the difference in the world! “Ava” is a hero!

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Woman accused of murdering 6-year-old in 1998 also killed man when she was a teen

She's the same woman who was recently arrested in the death of her 6-year-old son whose body was found near a Decatur cemetery in 1999.

www.wsbtv.com

Woman accused of murdering 6-year-old in 1998 also killed man when she was a teen​

A woman accused of murdering her 6-year-old son more than 20 years ago in DeKalb County also shot and killed a man in Charlotte as a teenager, according to the Charlotte Observer.

Teresa Black, who used to go by Teresa Walker, was 16 years old when she shot and killed a man in 1994, according to the Observer.

The local newspaper said that during a fight between a couple Black knew at a boarding house in Charlotte, Black fired a warning shot into the air.

The bullet hit 40 year-old Jimmy Lee Samuels in the back, killing him.

Black is the same woman who was recently arrested in the death of her son, William Dashawn Hamilton, whose body was found near a Decatur cemetery in 1999.


According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Black pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in Samuels’ death. She went to prison and served for more than a year.

A woman who helped identify Hamilton decades after his death said that when Black was released from prison, she lived in Charlotte. The friend, identified only as Ava, said she help take car of the child until his mother moved to DeKalb County in 1998.

Black was taken into custody on June 29 in Phoenix and is expected to face charges of murder, aggravated assault and concealing the death of another when she is extradited back to DeKalb County.https://jadserve.postrelease.com/tr...utm_medium=adchoicesicon&utm_source=wsbtv.com

 

[Summer_Breeze]

Mom to learn her fate in upcoming murder trial following 1999 death of her 6-year-old son

Nearly 25 years later, a trial date for Teresa Black has been set for Tuesday, Jan. 2.

www.11alive.com

Author: Akilah Winters
Published: 8:14 PM EST December 20, 2023
Updated: 7:15 AM EST December 21, 2023

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A mother's fate will soon rest in the hands of a jury in the decades-old murder case of her 6-year-old son, according to the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office.

A trial date for Teresa Black has been set for Tuesday, Jan. 2.

Black was charged on two counts of felony murder, two counts of cruelty to children, aggravated assault and concealing the death of another last year in connection with the 1999 death of her son, William Dashawn Hamilton.

According to DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston, Black moved with her son to the Atlanta area in December 1998 from Charlotte.

Hamilton for 23 years was only known by investigators as Clifton Doe, a reference to his body being found in a wooded area near a cemetery off of the intersection of Clifton Springs and Clifton Church roads near a church cemetery.

A grand jury later indicted Black in 2022.

According to a previous indictment record, she is accused of causing her son's death by giving him "a substance or substances containing Diphenhydramine and Acetaminophen." In addition to allegedly giving her child those medicines, the mother is accused of striking him in the head with an unknown object. The indictment also alleges she failed to seek medical treatment for him and concealed his death.

The mother never reported her son missing, nor did anyone else, resulting in the inability to connect the remains found in 1999 to the child.

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Jury seated in cold case murder trial of mother in her 6-year-old's 1999 death

Nearly 25 years later, the trial against Teresa Black will begin Tuesday, Jan. 2.

www.11alive.com

Jury seated in cold case murder trial of mother in her 6-year-old's 1999 death​

A mother's fate will soon rest in the hands of a jury that will be selected starting Tuesday in the decades-old murder case of her 6-year-old son.

The trial process against Teresa Black will begin Tuesday morning, Jan. 2.

UPDATE: A jury has been seated, and opening statements are expected to begin at 9 a.m. Wednesday.

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Watch | Opening statements made in cold case murder trial of mother in her 6-year-old's 1999 death

Nearly 25 years after William Hamilton's death, the trial against Teresa Black began on Tuesday. The first witness testified in the case on Wednesday.

www.11alive.com

Prosecutors and defense attorneys made their opening statements Wednesday morning, and the first witness in the case began testimony. Court took a break a little after noon for lunch.

You can watch the opening statements below.

PROSECUTION


DEFENSE

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Shocking testimony Friday in DeKalb cold case murder of child

Teresa Black is charged with murdering her son, 6-year-old William Hamilton, and concealing his death for more than two decades.

www.fox5atlanta.com

Shocking testimony Friday in DeKalb cold case murder of child​

Teresa Black is charged with murdering her son, 6-year-old William Hamilton, and concealing his death for more than two decades.

Hamilton's paternal aunt told the court she tried to see her nephew several times over the years, unaware the boy was deceased. She befriended Teresa Black on Facebook before the defendant cut off all contact.

"He was awesome. He was a joy. He would light up the room," Hamilton told jurors. "He had a beautiful smile."

Jurors also heard from the child's biological father. He testified that Black repeatedly told him the boy was staying with family in Atlanta, then years later went after him for child support, when she knew their son was dead.

I got papers in the mail for child support payments, William was already gone," his father William Hamilton testified. "I didn't know that I'm getting child support payments like he is still alive."

Witnesses told jurors that the defendant lied repeatedly when they asked her about little William's whereabouts.


On Friday, the defendant's ex-husband testified that he had a phone conversation with someone claiming to be Teresa Black's son in 2005, about 6 years after his death.

"I asked my wife to call my stepson. I wanted to speak to hm.

She made a phone call. I spoke to some gentleman on the phone who was supposed to be him," Loquise Black explained.

Loquise Black said Teresa initiated the call because he wanted to talk to William about moving to Alaska, where the couple lived at that time.

"At the time, we had just gotten married. I'm trying to catch up with him, see how he is doing," Loquise Black explained. "If he would allow me to be in his life. We had supposedly talked, and the talk was a good conversation, but it doesn't mean nothing to me now because it wasn't him."

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Jury hears final testimonies in Teresa Black murder trial, closing arguments expected soon

On Monday, Black sat in front of a judge where she decided not to testify in her case. The judge said that closing arguments will officially begin on Tuesday.

www.11alive.com

Jury hears final testimonies in Teresa Black murder trial, closing arguments expected soon​

Closing arguments will begin on Tuesday after jurors heard the final testimonies in the case where a metro Atlanta mother is accused in the 1999 death of her 6-year-old son.



On Monday, Black sat in front of a judge and decided not to testify in her case. In four days of testimony, over 20 experts and witnesses took the stand for prosecution.

According to a previous indictment record, she is accused of giving her son too much cold medicine, which allegedly led to his death. The record also accused the mother of striking him in the head with an unknown object and failing to seek medical treatment for him. William's remains were discovered in 1999, but it wasn't until 2022 that detectives finally identified the boy and arrested his mom.

The prosecution's final witness also testified on Monday. Investigator Matthew McLendon interviewed Black when they tracked her down to Phoenix in 2022. He shared a Facebook message that was verified from 2017 where Wanda Hamilton, William’s aunt, asks Black about her nephew, who would’ve been 23 years old if he was alive.

 

[Kimster]

What a horrible person!

 

[Summer_Breeze]

Teresa Black trial: Mother found not guilty of son's murder

The DeKalb County jury found Teresa Black not guilty of murdering her son, but guilty of concealing his death over 20 years ago.

www.aol.com

TYLER FINGERT
January 10, 2024 at 1:32 PM

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - A DeKalb County jury has found Teresa Black not guilty of the murder of her 6-year-old son.

After deliberating for hours on Tuesday and Wednesday, the jury reached a verdict, finding Black guilty of only concealing her son's death. The jury did not find Black guilty on five of the six counts, including murder, aggravated assault, and cruelty to children.

As the counts were read, the boy's father walked out of the court.

Minutes after a DeKalb County jury found Teresa Black not guilty of murdering her 6-year-old son more than two decades ago, two jurors who made that decision spoke to FOX 5.

"The jury had a very hard task in this case," said Samuel Logan, the jury foreman.

Black faced six charges, including two counts of felony murder. The jury acquitted her on five of the six charges, but they did find her guilty of concealing her son’s death.

"The evidence was limited at best as far as physical evidence to support the charges that were brought upon Teresa Black by the state," Logan said.

"It was emotional for all of us," said Jonathan Mittleman, another juror on the case. "There was one lady who was crying in the jury room."

Jurors say they wanted to do more but their hands were tied.

"We all didn't want the outcome that we got, but we felt this was the fairest based on the law," Mittleman said.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

More at link. ~Summer

 

[Kimster]

The fairest based on the law? Fairest to who? Makes me sick. They really let that little boy down.

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

She could be facing ONE to ten years...
Her son's identity was unknown for 23 years. I know that's not how things work, but she should face a minimum of 23 years.

DeKalb County district attorney 'disappointed' in jury's verdict in Teresa Black trial, jurors satisfied with decision

Shortly after the verdict was released, jurors and DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston spoke with news reporters reacting to the verdict.

www.11alive.com

Sentencing is scheduled on Friday, Jan. 12. Black can face anywhere from one to 10 years in prison, according to DA Boston.

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Mother learns her sentence for concealing her son's death for decades

Teresa Black was sentenced to 10 years in prison with credit for time served which is the maximum she can receive for the charge.

www.11alive.com

Mother learns her sentence for concealing her son's death for decades​

DeKalb County Judge Stacey Hydrick sentenced Teresa Black to 10 years in prison with credit for the 549 days she has already served receiving the maximum.

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

'The boy in the woods' | 23 years after his body was found, we finally learned his name

His mother was charged, but a jury found her not guilty in his murder.

www.11alive.com

'The boy in the woods' | 23 years after his body was found, we finally learned his name​

A young boy's body was found in the woods near a small church cemetery in DeKalb County back in 1999. For more than 20 years, authorities didn't know his name.

Finally, an artist’s age progression portrait helped investigators learn the boy's identity and led to an arrest in the case.

The story of the boy and the trial of Teresa Black will be revisited in the A&E show "Killer Cases," set to premiere on June 5.


Teresa Black is currently serving her 10-year sentence at the Emanuel Women's Facility in Swainsboro, Georgia, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections. Her maximum release date is July 12, 2032 -- 10 years to the day that she was arrested.