The sentencing hearing for the teen who pleaded guilty in February to killing 13-year-old Tristyn Bailey in 2021 began on Tuesday.
Fucci, now 16, was 14 years old when he stabbed Tristyn 114 times on Mother’s Day 2021. The cheerleader’s body was found near a retention pond eight and a half hours after her parents reported her missing.
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The prosecution’s goal was to paint a picture of who Fucci was at the time of Tristyn’s murder. Witnesses talked about a Snapchat selfie taken by Fucci in the back of a St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicle the day of the murder, following the crime.
The prosecution called witnesses to the stand, including a detective, crime scene technician, sergeant and undercover detective with the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office.
‘Why is this my problem?’
Evidence presented Tuesday included multiple photos and videos taken by Fucci, showing him posing, throwing up peace signs and referencing Tristyn on several occasions.
Surveillance video from inside an interrogation room after the crime was shown, where Fucci presented himself as being unaware of the killing.
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Fucci family member: “They found that girl in our neighborhood.”
Fucci: “Is she good?”
Family member: “No Aiden, she’s not good, she’s dead.”
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In that video, Fucci would continue to question why he was being questioned.
Fucci: “Why is this my problem?
Fucci family member: “You were the last one seen alive with her, Aiden. Do you understand how serious this is?”
‘What would you really do if I killed somebody?’
Judge R. Lee Smith also heard from a crime scene analyst from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Dr. James Fulcher, Chief Medical Examiner for Volusia County and Dr. Gregory Prichard, a licensed psychologist.
Tristyn’s teacher, cheerleading coach and a friend of the Bailey family also got to deliver victim impact statements to the court.
RELATED: Aiden Fucci pleads guilty in the murder of St. Johns County 13-year-old Tristyn Bailey
Prichard, a witness for the state, revealed some disturbing new details during the first day of the two-day hearing.
Psychologist Dr. Greg Prichard described early signs of what he called Aiden Fucci’s “unusual” fascination with gore and violence and he shared chilling details from an interview he had with Fucci’s former girlfriend.
Warning: Some of these details may be disturbing.
Prichard took the stand, revealing troubling details about Fucci’s mental state in the time leading up to Tristyn’s stabbing death on Mother’s Day 2021.
“Mr. Fucci talked about death and killing a lot,” Prichard said. “This was important because there was a lot of this killing and death talk from Mr. Fucci that was unusual.”
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Even more disturbing, Prichard said, when interviewing Fucci’s former girlfriend, she noted that Fucci would “take his knife out and pretend stabbing her” and that Fucci once noted “how easy it would be to kill her while she slept.”
However, the biggest piece of information yet was a question that Fucci’s former girlfriend said he asked her in the month leading up to Tristyn’s murder, providing an ominous foreshadowing.
“Basically asking, ‘what would you do if I really killed somebody,’ and then following that up with ‘expect me to kill somebody within this month,’” Prichard said.
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Prichard also said the most important aspect in determining an individual’s ability for rehabilitation, which is a large factor in sentencing, is their behavior and remorse shown after the crime.
He went on to note that Fucci has not at this point seemingly shown remorse or any hope as a candidate for rehabilitation.
Fucci faces a possible life sentence. His sentencing hearing will continue Wednesday morning.
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