Case review for woman accused of murdering toddler set for August

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Cole County judge has further delayed a case review for a woman accused of murdering a toddler in 2018.

Quatavia Givens was charged with first-degree murder, child abuse, first-degree endangering the welfare of a child and abandoning a corpse in relation to the death of 4-year-old Darnell Gray in 2018.. She is being held at the Cole County Jail.

On Wednesday, Judge William Hickle pushed back Givens' case review to 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 8. The delay comes after Givens was deemed incompetent to stand trial on Aug. 14, but never officially received treatment from the Department of Mental Health.

Givens appeared in a Cole County courtroom Wednesday in person, accompanied by her attorneys, James Egan and Delaney Catlettstout.

Givens' attorneys filed a motion in objection to the DMH's request for an extension on March 6. The judge pushed back a hearing scheduled for March 7 to Wednesday, stating he needed to hear arguments in person, due to the nature of the motions filed.

Debra Miles, of the Department of Mental Health, stated during Wednesday's hearing that Givens has been assigned to receive treatment at Fulton State Hospital and is currently on the wait list. However, due to an increase in demand for services, there is currently not a bed available for Givens to receive treatment.

Miles said the hospital has 75 beds designated for competency restoration. She said all beds at the hospital, regardless of their intended use are full, which is why Givens has not been taken to the hospital.

Miles stated the department needs an additional 60 days to submit a report to courts that would determine if Givens can go to trial. She said Givens was technically committed to the department in August.

Egan countered by stating commitment does not begin until a person arrives at a hospital.

Egan said they were never told where Givens was going to receive treatment. He asked the judge to have the department delay the evaluation until Givens has received treatment at the hospital, adding it's not possible for Givens to improve without being in a hospital.

Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Scott Fox said the state agrees that commitment does not begin until a person arrives at a facility and stated Givens should be moved up on the waiting list.

A motion claims Givens was No. 36, as of March 6.

Miles stated the Fulton State Hospital does not have enough medical examiners and they are all not equally trained. The person assigned to Givens' case began working in March, according to Miles which has not given them time to receive adequate training.

Miles said she believed Givens was being seen by a medical examiner team at the Cole County Jail, where she is being held. Miles said she doesn't think that holding off on an evaluation until Givens arrives at the hospital is consistent with the statute.

Hickle, as well as Egan asked why Givens could not be taken to a different hospital over concerns the case will be at a standstill until treatment occurs.

According to Miles, the other two hospitals located in Kansas City and St. Louis are also full.

The judge stated he believed the DMH is not carrying out their duties to provide competency restoration, as well as a report to the courts. Hickle said he doesn't believe it makes sense to have Givens evaluated within the next month or two, as her condition is likely getting worse while waiting in jail.

Egan filed a motion asking the judge to hold off on an evaluation until 6 months after Givens has been taken to a hospital. The judge agreed to the motion, but stated he wanted to have another case review before then to see if Givens has been taken to one.

Givens -- who has been previously described as a caretaker -- was accused of killing Darnell Gray in October 2018. Court documents say she initially reported Gray as being abducted or that he had run away from her house in the 1100 block of Buena Vista Street in Jefferson City.

The boy was missing for six days before he was located by local law enforcement in the 2100 block of Louis Circle in Jefferson City.

A grand jury's indictment charged Givens with first-degree murder when it was revealed that Gray had been suffocated.