JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville man accused of the murder of a 22-month-old girl was back in court Thursday morning for a pretrial hearing in the case.
Prosecutors with the State Attorney’s Office have already said they would seek the death penalty for Nathaniel Davis.
Davis did not speak during Thursday’s hearing.
His attorney said he’s still filing motions in the case and the next pretrial hearing was set for May 15th.
Duval County’s court portal shows the SAO filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty for Davis, 23, who is accused of first-degree murder, two counts of sexual battery, aggravated child abuse and tampering with physical evidence in connection with the death of Zamora Foe.
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Foe’s mother and Davis’ girlfriend, 20-year-old Zayla Goodwin, is facing a charge of aggravated assault in connection to her death.
According to the warrant obtained by News4JAX, on Sept. 10, Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department paramedics were called to a home on Taurus Circle North where the toddler had gone into cardiac arrest and was unresponsive.
Paramedics rushed the child to Wolfson Children’s Hospital where she was listed in critical condition.
Foe died on Sept. 18.
Months later, on Dec. 4, Foe’s death was officially ruled a homicide. The Medical Examiner found Foe died of blunt force trauma and had methamphetamine in their system.
According to the arrest reports, Foe suffered a broken left arm, fractures to both legs, bruising, and other injuries.
The warrant also stated that a search of the home was conducted and that it led to the discovery of multiple bloody bandages, bloody blankets next to Foe’s bed, and bloody diapers in the trash. A second search led to the discovery of multiple cell phones, meth, and drug paraphernalia.
A woman, whose name was redacted from the warrant, told detectives that Goodwin, Davis, and Foe moved into her home five days before she was rushed to the hospital. According to the warrant, the woman told detectives she began seeing bruises on the toddler and noticed she was no longer walking and asked Goodwin what happened to the toddler.
According to the warrant, Goodwin told the woman that Zamora was injured after falling in a bathtub while Davis was bathing the child at their previous home in Hillard.
Goodwin and Davis were both arrested on child neglect charges after it was determined the couple neglected to seek medical attention for Foe despite her injuries.
In March, a grand jury indicted Davis on first-degree murder. Davis was also charged with two counts of sexual battery, aggravated child abuse and tampering with physical evidence.
Goodwin was charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child.