5-Year-Old Killed In Anne Arundel County, Teenage Half-Brother Pleads Guilty: Report

PASADENA, MD — Officials said a Pasadena teenager who pleaded guilty to murdering his 5-year-old half-sister, Anayah Jannah Abdul, will go to trial next year to determine if he is responsible for his actions.

Prosecutors identified the accused man as 19-year-old Stephen J. Davis II. Davis was 17 and a rising senior at Chesapeake High School at the time of the crime, a press release said.

Authorities announced last Thursday that Davis pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, but he opted for the trial to decide if he is criminally responsible. The trial is scheduled for April 10, 2023.

"The defendant will have the burden of proof in persuading a judge or a jury that at the time of the murder, due to a mental disorder, he lacked substantial capacity to appreciate the criminality of the conduct or conform his conduct to the requirements of the law," Anne Arundel County State's Attorney Anne Colt Leitess said in the release.

The investigation started on Oct. 3, 2020 when police responded to the 4100 block of Apple Leaf Court in Pasadena after a relative reported a missing black Dodge Charger, officials said.

The family member told the Anne Arundel County Police Department that nobody had permission to drive the sedan. Davis was also missing at that time, authorities said.

Officers learned that the relative had woken up, checked her phone and saw that there was a doorbell camera notification of movement in her front yard at 3 a.m. She saw on her doorbell camera that Davis got into the family's minivan that was parked in front of the garage and moved it to the street. The doorbell camera at a home across the street then showed the family's garage door opening before a dark sedan pulled out and sped away, prosecutors said.

The family called 911 when they found a concerning note that they thought Davis wrote. Officials said the group found Abdul dead in her bed while officers were on the scene. County police then issued a critically missing person alert for Davis.

The release said officers tracked Davis' location to Interstate 70 in Ohio later that day. Ohio State Police and other agencies then started looking for the missing black Dodge Charger.

Ohio State troopers spotted Davis driving on I-70 in Springfield, Ohio. Authorities said the troopers tried to pull Davis over, but he accelerated and started a short police chase where he reached 131 mph.

Davis eventually pulled over to the shoulder and was taken into custody. Officials said they extradited Davis back to Anne Arundel County and charged him with first-degree murder.

Investigators also conducted forensic evidence testing. Prosecutors said this testing suggested that Davis was guilty.

Assistant State's Attorneys Anastasia Prigge and David Russell prosecuted the case. Judge William C. Mulford II presided over it.

Related:

• Child Killed In Anne Arundel By Teenage Half-Brother: Police
• Teen Accused Of Killing Half-Sister Brought Back To MD: Police