Baby Grace, Riley Sawyers: He Says, She Says Battle Begins

Clyde Zeigler's attorney says he's innocent

The opening salvo was launched a few minutes ago in what is expected to be a fight to the death between Kimberly Trenor and Clyde Zeigler II.

The mother and stepfather of Riley Sawyers, until recently only known to the world as "Baby Grace" began a few minutes ago when Zeigler's attorney, Neal Davis III, issued a statement saying that Zeigler "is positively not guilty of the offense for which he stands charged".

The battle begins between the two people present when 2-year-old Riley Sawyers was savagely beaten to death in July.

It's a fight to death as Zeigler and Trenor were both indicted by a Texas grand jury yesterday in the savage beating death of 2-year-old Riley Sawyers, then dumping her body in Galveston Bay.

The storage container containing the body was found by a fisherman after it washed up on a sandbar a little over 6 weeks ago.

Both Zeigler and Trenor could face the death penalty in Texas, if convicted.

Trenor had previously told reporters that Zeigler 'had lost control while disciplining Riley'.

Kimberly Trenor says he did it

MORE:

An attorney for the stepfather accused of killing the toddler known as 'Baby Grace' said Thursday that his client didn't kill the girl, and blamed her mother for mischaracterizing what happened.

Kimberly Dawn Trenor unfairly pinned the blame for 2-year-old Riley Ann Sawyer's death on her husband, Royce Clyde Zeigler II, the attorney said.

"The death of this innocent child, however, was absolutely not caused by any action attributed to my client," Neal Davis III said in a statement.

Trenor's attorney, Tommy Stickler Jr., wasn't immediately available for comment, his secretary said.

The couple was charged Wednesday with capital murder and tampering with evidence, and could face the death penalty or life in prison without parole if convicted.

Trenor told Galveston County authorities that she and her husband of less than two months beat the girl with leather belts, held her head underwater in a bathtub and threw her across a room, her head slamming into a tile floor. She said they kept her body in a shed for one to two months before dumping it in the bay.

Trenor's attorney told reporters shortly after the two were arrested that Zeigler had lost control while disciplining Riley for failing to say "please" and "yes sir."

Riley Sawyers' life lasted 2 years

Davis initially declined to comment on Trenor's account beyond saying it wasn't credible. But on Thursday, he released a statement saying her "misstatements" led to Wednesday's indictment.

Zeigler "is positively not guilty of the offense for which he stands charged," Davis added.

So now the battle of who actually killed the little 2-year-old begins.

Expect a statement from Trenor's attorney in the very near future.

Cornered by the law, Clyde Zeigler and Kimberly Trenor will both point fingers at the other as they battle to stay alive.

A battle that little Riley Sawyers lost in July.

by Mondoreb
[images: ap]
Sources:
Attorney Says Stepdad Didn't Kill Toddler Known as Baby Grace
Jury Brings Capital Charges
Capital Murder Charges and Probable Cause



Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

Baby Grace, Riley Sawyers, Madeline McCann: Complete DBKP Story and Video Listing

COMPLETE LISTING:
Baby Grace stories by Death By 1000 Papercuts
[updated: December 11, 2007]

The story of "Baby Grace", whose body was discovered on a sandbar in a cooler, near Galveston TX on October 29, 2007. The body turned out to be that of 2-year-old Riley Sawyers.

Madeline McCann's story is that of a 4-year-old girl, abducted from her parents' resort room while the family was on vacation in Portugal.

Some speculated for awhile that Baby Grace may have been the missing Madeline. Her whereabouts is still unknown.

Baby Grace, Riley Sawyers, Madeline McCann:

He Says, She Says Battle Begins

Grand Jury Bring Capital Charges

Capital Murder Charges and Probable Cause

Riley Sawyers' Pregnant Mother: Riley Needed Some "Manners"

Case Has Had False Leads and Alarms

Additional Charges, Additional Questions

Mother's Grim Tale of Abuse and Death

Madeline McCann:"Killed by a Pedophile"

Mother Beat, Tortured Toddler

22 Other Little Girls to be Investigated

Baby Grace, Riley Sawyers: Our Deepest Sympathy

Baby Grace, Riley Sawyers: Couple Arrested

Riley Sawyers: Where is She? What's Happened to Her?

Baby Grace and the Little Lost Girl, Riley Sawyers

Grandmother Believes Baby Grace is Granddaughter

Baby Grace and Riley Sawyers Possible Match

Baby Grace: FBI Reward Comparison

Police Follow Tip to Dead End; Missing Girl

FBI Now to Announce $20,000 Reward

FBI Offers $20,000 Reward But No Press Release; The Madeline McCann Connection

VIDEO Who Is Baby Grace: A Video Timeline

Baby Grace: A Timeline - "She Could Be From Any Place in the World"

VIDEO Hundreds of Tips Flood Police

Baby Grace, Madeline McCann and the Little Lost Girls

Three Possible Matches Found

Baby Grace Not Only Missing Little Girl

Is Baby Grace Madeline McCann?

The Heartbreaking Story of Baby Grace


MADELINE McCANN

Case Has Had False Leads and Alarms

Madeline McCann:"Killed by a Pedophile"

by Little Baby Ginn & Mondoreb

Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page

Baby Grace, Riley Sawyers: Additional Charges, Additional Questions

"The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it."--Albert Einstein

2-year-old Riley Sawyers was savagely and repeatedly beaten and tortured until she was dead. The punishment was inflicted on her by her alleged mother--the one person a defenseless toddler turns to for protection and comfort.

Kimberly Dawn Trenor and her accomplice/boyfriend/husband completed their vile deed and then stashed the little girl's body in a storage shed. After many days, they took a trip to buy their Wal-Mart version of Riley's casket: a cooler commonly used for picnics.

At that moment, Trenor's mothering instinct apparently asserted itself: Riley Sawyer's body was found wrapped in plastic and laid in her temporary resting place. It was set adrift in Galveston Bay, to be found on a sandbar by a fisherman.

It's a mystery why they treated Riley's body more gently after she was dead than when she was living through what must have been her last confused, hurting, terror-filled moments.

Her mother described to police how she "beat the child with leather belts and held her head under water in the bathtub. She said Zeigler picked the girl up by her hair and also threw her across the room, slamming her head into the tile floor."

Speculation

The charges currently against the pair consist of tampering with evidence and injuring the child. What additional charges they face is speculation at this moment.

The final scene described by Trenor is one where acts were committed that were devoid of any human emotion.

That would seem to rule out various "done in haste" or "in the heat of the moment" defenses. What the charges will be and what kind of defense will be offered, if any, is again speculation.

Zigler reportedly tried to end his life last week as the police closed in, leaving behind a note that "his wife was not responsible". He was less successful at ending his own life than that of his companion's 2-year-old.

Was that an attempt at achieving a nobility in death that was missing in his life?

The questions heard most often asked by readers who emailed or commented at this point: How could a mother do this to her baby? Why did it have to be so violent? Why not give the child to someone who loved her?

It's hard to say why little Riley death was so gruesome.

If the child was a bother, why not contact the grandmother in Ohio or the father?

Both made repeated efforts to contact Kimberly Dawn Trenor.

There has been talk of a custody struggle between the Kimberly Dawn Trenor and Riley's father.

The final sadistic acts committed on the person of Riley Sawyers are easier to understand if Riley isn't viewed as a human being; as a little, defenseless child.

Those acts are a little easier to understand if one sees her two-year-old daughter, Riley Sawyers, not as most would view her--a helpless toddler, crying out in fear and panic at her final treatment--but as Kimberly Dawn Trenor apparently saw her.

Not as a child, but as a pawn.

by Mondoreb

Sources:
Mother's Grim Tale of Abuse and Death
Toddler Tortured: Little Riley Never Had a Chance




Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

Baby Grace, Riley Sawyers: Mother's Grim Tale of Abuse and Death

Major Ray Tuttoilmondo, Galveston County

Sheriff's Department (James Nielson: Chronicle)

The grim details of the last days of little Riley "Baby Grace" Sawyers life have begun to emerge.

From today's Galveston County Daily News:

In an interview, Kimberly Dawn Trenor, 19, of Spring, told investigators that she and her husband, Royce Clyde Zeigler, 24, beat her daughter with two leather belts the morning of July 24, an affidavit says.

They also held her head underwater in the bathtub and Zeigler picked her up by her hair and threw her across the room, slamming her head into tile floor, the affidavit says.

An autopsy on Oct. 30 found that the child had three skull fractures on the back of her head.

The pair also smothered the girl by pushing her face into a pillow in her room and into the cushions of a couch, the affidavit says.

Trenor told investigators that, during the beating, her husband gave the girl child’s pain medication and covered her with a purple towel after she was dead, the affidavit says. [1]

Kimberly and Royce went to Walmart for the specific purpose of picking out a "suitable" container to dispose of little Riley's dead body. One can imagine the two walking the fluorescent lit aisles, looking at various sized plastic containers until choosing the "right" one.

They then wrapped her in plastic and placed her in a blue plastic tote. They put the tote out in a storage shed in the backyard of their Spring home. The authorities are not quite sure how long little Riley's body was kept there, anywhere from one to two months.



One could see Kimberly looking out the kitchen window to the storage shed where her daughter's body lay while she washed the dishes or cooked dinner. Of Royce mowing the lawn or waving to the neighbors, the children who played in the yards next door. Of Kimberly and Royce talking in quiet whispers, discussing where they could take Riley, where no one would ever find the evidence of what they had done.

The couple took the remains in their car and tossed them into the water near the Galveston Causeway, the affidavit says.

On Oct. 29, a fisherman found the plastic bin with the little girl inside.[1]

When the plastic storage tote containing Riley's body was found resting on a sand bar the Galveston County Sheriff's Department took over the investigation. They found her wrapped in plastic, she wore a little pink skirt and matching blouse, little tennis shoes that flashed bright lights from the heels. No one had reported a little girl missing. No one knew who this little girl in the plastic tote was. They released a composite sketch of Riley and dubbed her "Baby Grace." [2]


Did Kimberly and Royce see the newspaper and media reports about the unidentified "Baby Grace" case? Did they discuss the case with neighbors? Did they believe that dumping Riley's body into Galveston Bay would be the end, that somehow, they would be in the clear?

They both sit in Galveston County Jail. One wonders what possible defense their attorney's will present. Bets are, they'll soon point the finger of blame at each other.

[1] - Galveston County Daily News
[2] - Baby Grace and the Little Lost Girl, Riley Sawyers

By LBG



DBKP.com - Bigger, Better!.
Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

Baby Grace, Riley Sawyers Mother Beat, Tortured Toddler "Little Riley Never Had a Chance"

Kimberly Trenor: Mother savagely beat her 2-year-old daughter

UPDATE: 00:22 EST 11-27-07 AP: Zeigler attempted suicide last week:

Zeigler attempted suicide last week and wrote a note saying, "My wife is innocent of the sins that I committed," according to the court documents, which were filed Saturday and first reported Monday by Houston television station KTRK.

"Little Riley Sawyers never had a chance".

That was one staff reaction after reading the gruesome details of the last days of 2-year-old Riley Sawyers and the trauma she underwent.

A picture of a mother beating and torturing her 2-year-old toddler with help from the step-father has just emerged from police records.

The last days of the little girl were not pleasant ones.

The mother, Kimberly Tenor, originally told investigators that the girl was handed over to "someone with papers from Ohio".

The latest story told investigators how the the little girl was handed over to Death.

From the AP's Documents: Mom Describes Killing Girl, 2:

A woman believed to be the mother of a 2-year-old whose body was found in Galveston Bay told police she and the girl's stepfather beat and tortured the child to death, court documents show.

The details, in a statement Kimberly Dawn Trenor gave to police, paint a chilling picture of the last days of the girl investigators called "Baby Grace" as they worked for weeks to learn her identity.

Investigators are awaiting DNA test results but said Monday they are "fairly confident" that the body a fisherman found in a plastic box Oct. 29 is that of Riley Ann Sawyers. Trenor, 19, and her husband, Royce Clyde Zeigler II, were in custody on charges of hurting the girl.
Clyde Zeigler II: Accomplice in gruesome death of toddler
"It was a few weeks ago I held up this little shoe and asked, 'Who is Baby Grace? Who does this belong to?'" sheriff's Maj. Ray Tuttoilmondo said at a news conference. "We're now fairly confident we know the answer to that."

An autopsy revealed three skull fractures, but the cause of death has not been determined.

Tuttoilmondo said he could not discuss details of the little girl's death, but Trenor said in her police statement, first reported by Houston television station KTRK, that she and Zeigler, 24, killed her July 24.

The girl was beaten with leather belts, had her head held underwater in a bathtub and then was thrown across a room, her head slamming into a tile floor, Trenor said in the document. She said they kept the body in a storage shed for one to two months before they put it in a plastic bin and dumped it into Galveston Bay.

Trenor's attorney, Tom Stickler, said she has cooperated with authorities. He declined to comment about her statement to investigators.

"But from what she said, there is no doubt that the girl found is Riley Sawyers," Stickler said.

Trenor and Zeigler were arrested early Saturday and charged with injury to a child and tampering with evidence, Tuttoilmondo said. Bail was set at $350,000 each. The couple's next court appearance was expected to be scheduled on Tuesday.

Wendell Odom, Zeigler's attorney, declined to comment on the case except to say Zeigler grew up in Spring, about 75 miles north of Galveston, and works as an instrument technician in the oil industry.

Trenor and Zeigler met a couple of years ago playing an online game, World of Warcraft, and she moved with her daughter from suburban Cleveland to Spring in June, Stickler said.

Riley's paternal grandmother, Sheryl Sawyers, hadn't seen her granddaughter in months when she saw a police sketch of "Baby Grace." Thinking it might be Riley, she called authorities in Texas.

In Mentor, Ohio, on Monday, Sawyers wiped away tears at a news conference and held up the Elmo doll she had already bought Riley for Christmas.

"It's hard to think that I'll never see her again," she said.

The Sawyers family's attorney, Laura DePledge, said they take comfort in knowing that the girl is "resting peacefully and is no longer subject to abuse."

DePledge said Trenor and Sawyers' son, Robert Sawyers, also of Mentor, had been high school sweethearts. Sheryl Sawyers said she has not seen Riley since the girl and Trenor moved to Texas.

Robert Sawyers, who works in an auto-parts store, was never married to Trenor but lived with her and their daughter in his parents' home for about two years. He and Trenor split up after March 31, when he was charged with domestic violence against her.

DePledge said there was insufficient evidence to support the charge, which was reduced to disorderly conduct. Robert Sawyers is now married and has a 3-month-old son.
Riley Sawyers: Never had a chance
Riley "had a very big imagination for such a little girl," he said of his daughter. "She could play with anything and have fun with it."

Tuttoilmondo said Trenor had told relatives that someone claiming to be a social worker from Ohio took the girl in July.

Tuttoilmondo said investigators became emotionally involved in determining the little girl's identity.

"Any way you look at it, we carry a piece of her with us and will always carry a little piece of her with us," he said. "She's still our little girl."

From CNN, "Mother describes beating of 2-year-old, hiding her body":

Before dying, 2-year-old Riley Ann Sawyers was beaten with belts, picked up by her hair, thrown across the room and held under water, according to an affidavit from the Galveston County Sheriff's Office.

Kimberly Trenor's testimony raises some troubling questions.

Why?

Was Kimbler Trenor like this prior to moving to Texas?

Why did she fail in any mother primary job: that of protecting her offspring?

How can a mother kill a defenseless, little girl who couldn't fight back? A little girl whose only protection was her mother?

After the violent beating death of the two-year-old, why carefully lay the baby in a cooler, wrapped in plastic?

Why did the pair stay in place in Harris County instead of attempting to flee?

Probably more information will come out in the weeks to come and in the trial. For now, however, the details are enough to anger or sadden any parent.

More charges should be forthcoming, as it is evident that more than tampering with evidence and injury to a child occurred.

For those who have followed the story, the mysterious case of establishing the identity of Baby Grace appears to be over and, like most stories will be forgotten at some point.

For a family in Ohio, it will take longer and the story will not be forgotten.

The gruesome details of the death of Riley Sawyers stick in one's mind.

by Mondoreb
notes by Little Baby Ginn

The thoughts and prayers of DBKP go out to Riley's father and his family

MORE ON RILEY SAWYERS, BABY GRACE in upper left-hand corner of page.



Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.