GALVESTON — Manslaughter could be among the charges considered by a jury in the capital murder trial of Royce Clyde Zeigler II, who is accused of killing his stepdaughter, Riley Ann Sawyers.
After calling 37 witnesses in seven days, prosecutors and defense attorneys rested Thursday.
Zeigler, 26, admitted to dumping the body of his 2-year-old stepdaughter in Galveston Bay.
He faces the same punishment as his wife, Kimberly Dawn Trenor, 21. On Feb. 2, she was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life without parole.
Sawyers died slowly and painfully July 25, 2007, of injuries suffered from three skull fractures, according to testimony. Authorities allege a daylong disciplinary session went bad inside the couple’s home in Spring.
During videotaped interviews with authorities, Zeigler admitted storing Sawyers’ body for weeks in a plastic container in his carport. On Oct. 29, 2007, a fisherman found the girl’s remains. Authorities named the little girl Baby Grace until learning her identity 26 days later.
The defense objected Thursday afternoon to prosecutors’ attempts to have 10th District Court Judge David Garner add lesser-included charges of manslaughter, law of parties and conspiracy to the charging document, which is expected to be read to the jury this morning, Dee McWilliams, one of Zeigler’s attorneys, said.
Garner is expected to make his ruling known today in open court, which will be the setting for closing arguments.
Zeigler’s attorneys say there is no evidence he killed Sawyers, and presented 13 witnesses Wednesday and Thursday.
Zeigler’s mother, Nellie Zeigler, took the stand on Thursday.
In the two months or so Nellie Zeigler knew Baby Grace, she fell in love with the toddler, she said.
The last time Nellie Zeigler saw Sawyers was July 23, 2007. The family went to a pizza restaurant, and Royce Zeigler ordered Sawyers her favorite pizza: macaroni and cheese.
"Did you love Riley?" Neal Davis III, one of Zeigler’s attorneys, asked. Nellie Zeigler replied: "Oh, God, yes. I loved her so much."
Patrick Cherry, a deputy constable with Harris County Precinct No. 4, testified Thursday he didn’t believe Zeigler’s admission to covering up Sawyers’ death. Cherry met the family after responding to a call about Royce Zeigler’s vandalized truck and eventually became a family friend.
"You’re OK with testifying about (Zeigler’s) character?" prosecutor Kayla Allen asked, reminding Cherry that Zeigler admitted to wrapping Sawyers’ body in three garbage bags and storing it in the carport.
"I don’t believe he did that," Cherry said.
"You think he’s lying?" Allen asked.
"To protect the woman he loves," Cherry said.
The defense rested without calling Zeigler to the stand.
The prosecution put on two rebuttal witnesses: Sgt. Mike Barry, the lead investigator for the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office, and Tonya Mercer, a medical assistant at a women’s clinic where Trenor had her contraceptive device removed.
Trenor gave birth to a son, who was living with her relatives near Dallas.
This story was brought to you thanks to our partnership with The Galveston County Daily News.
