A motion to admit polygraph test results as evidence in the manslaughter trial of Miranda Hopkins of Troy, who is accused of killing her 7-week-old baby in January, was denied Friday by a judge in Waldo County Superior Court in Belfast.
Hopkins’ lawyer, Laura Shaw, filed a motion in August to have the results of polygraph tests allowed as evidence at trial, showing that Hopkins did not kill her infant son.
Jury selection in the trial is scheduled to begin Thursday.
Shaw filed the motion to admit the test and its results as they “overwhelmingly demonstrated” that Hopkins was innocent, according to court documents. Shaw said the examination, conducted by licensed polygraph administrator Mark Teceno, indicated there was more than a 99 percent certainty that Hopkins was telling the truth.
Superior Court Justice Robert Murray disagreed, ruling from the bench following a hearing on the motion Friday, according to a court clerk.
Shaw did not return repeated calls and messages Friday, despite having alerted reporters about the hearing earlier in the day. Assistant Attorney General Leane Zainea did not reply to an email seeking comment on the ruling.
Lisa Marchese, head of the criminal division at the Maine Attorney General’s Office, said by phone Friday that the state objected to the introduction of the polygraph test results during Hopkins’ trial.
“There is overwhelming case law in support of the state’s position opposing the defendant’s motion,” Marchese said.
Hopkins called 911 on Jan. 12 from her mobile home on North Dixmont Road in Troy, saying her infant son, Jaxson, was unresponsive. The infant was pronounced dead at the scene. The cause of the baby’s death was listed as blunt force trauma that included cuts and bruises on the head and skull; rib fractures, and bleeding on the surface of the brain.
Hopkins allegedly told authorities she woke up and found her baby cold, white and “beat to hell.” Hopkins lived with Jaxson and two other sons, ages 6 and 8, who both have autism, she told police.
Hopkins originally was charged with knowing or depraved indifference murder, punishable by 25 years to life in prison. She was indicted by the Waldo County grand jury in February on a lesser charge of manslaughter.
Manslaughter is a Class A felony punishable by a period of time in prison not to exceed 30 years.
Shaw conceded in her motion to allow the test results that the Law Court in Maine generally supports the belief that polygraph examinations are not sufficiently reliable to allow the results, or a defendant’s willingness or unwillingness to take the test, as evidence.
Doug Harlow can be contacted at 612-2367 or at:
dharlow@centralmaine.com
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