ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — The mother of teenage killer Aiden Fucci was set to go to trial on Monday on an evidence tampering charge in Tristyn Bailey’s murder, but she changed her plea from not guilty to no contest in court on Friday instead.
Crystal Smith is the mother of Fucci, who was sentenced to life in prison in March for the brutal May 2021 murder of Tristyn, a St. Johns County 13-year-old.
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Judge R. Lee Smith adjudicated Crystal Smith guilty.
Crystal Smith will serve 30 days in the St. Johns County Jail and gets credit for 1 day. She was also sentenced to five years of probation and will be able to apply for early termination after three years.
Action News Jax told you Thursday night that Smith was expected to enter a plea in St. Johns County court during a 1:30 p.m. Friday hearing.
Smith’s plea brings to a close a two-year case for the Bailey family.
RELATED: Aiden Fucci’s mom to change plea in evidence tampering in connection to Tristyn Bailey’s murder
Stacey Bailey, Tristyn’s mother, read a statement in court to Smith.
“I have tried to put myself in your shoes on that day but I can’t... Because I could never put someone else’s child in harm’s way,” she said. “The choices you made on Mother’s Day May 9, 2021 will haunt me for the rest of my life.”
Action News Jax first told you in June 2021 when Smith was arrested and charged with tampering with evidence.
RELATED: Judge denies motion from defense team for Fucci’s mom asking that DNA evidence be thrown out
Video from inside the family’s home shows Smith washing the blood off the pants her son was wearing the night he killed Tristyn.
Smith’s attorney said she extends her deepest sympathies to the Bailey family and regrets the effects of her actions, as “she was a frantic mother who was trying to find out what was going on with her son.”
Monday was previously set for jury selection, with opening statements set to start Wednesday.
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Fucci was also set to go on trial on his murder charge but pleaded guilty on the first day of jury selection.
State Attorney R.J. Larizza released the following statement about Friday’s court proceedings:
“Parents should always strive to teach their children integrity, honesty and responsibility. What the defendant did was not protecting her child – she was assisting him in avoiding responsibility for an extraordinarily vicious and merciless crime. And that is a crime in more ways than one.”
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The Bailey family, which goes by the nickname the “Bailey 7,” released the following statement Friday afternoon through their attorney Matthew Hinson:
“As it was on March 24th when Aiden Fucci was sentenced to life in prison, today’s result and credit goes to the hard work of many.
“To begin with, we would like to thank Florida’s Seventh Judicial Circuit Court as a whole, and Judge Smith particularly, for doing their best to resolve the cases in a timely manner.
“We would again like to thank the Seventh Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office for their indelible spirit to get justice for our community. We will never be able to appropriately express our gratitude to Jennifer Dunton for the exceptional way in which she handled every aspect of the case. We want to be clear that the state attorney’s office involved us in today’s decision and we are supportive of the final outcome based on the law.
“Along these lines, we continue to benefit from the unmatched investigative work done by the Saint Johns Sheriff’s Office. The evidence and investigation done by the team enabled the evidence to be overwhelming in both cases.
“With the legal proceedings now complete, our hopes are with our community moving ahead. We hope for Tristyn’s classmates - that they will fully enjoy their milestones in the coming weeks. We hope for the parents of our community – that they help their children move forward with love, affection, and careful attention to their use of social media. We hope – that through your smiles, Tristyn’s bright smile will shine forever. Finally, for those who sacrificed so much on that Mother’s Day two years ago, we especially hope that this Mother’s Day will be an incredible day of joy and happiness.
“As for us, we are inspired and strengthened by the community support. We are going to look forward by dedicating ourselves to the foundation so that Tristyn’s legacy remains in our community forever. Through the Tristyn Bailey Foundation, we have amazing plans to strengthen our community, educate children and parents, advocate for victims of crime, and provide scholarship opportunities to deserving students. We look forward to doing all of these things alongside our community.
“We remain forever, Tristyn Bailey Strong!”
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