Law&Crime Sidebar - Aiden Fucci’s Mom Charged with Tampering in Cheerleader Stabbing Case — What’s Next?

Episode Date: February 7, 2023

Teen killer Aiden Fucci pleaded guilty Monday to the brutal murder of 13-year-old Tristyn Bailey in May 2021. The Florida teen’s mom now faces charges in the case for tampering with evidence when she allegedly washed her son’s bloody jeans after the stabbing. The Law&Crime Network’s Angenette Levy breaks down what’s next for Fucci’s mom with Florida state attorney Dave Aronberg.LAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:YouTube Management - Bobby SzokePodcasting - Sam GoldbergVideo Editing - Michael DeiningerGuest Booking - Alyssa FisherSocial Media Management - Kiera BronsonSUBSCRIBE TO OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Court JunkieObjectionsThey Walk Among AmericaCoptales and CocktailsThe Disturbing TruthSpeaking FreelyLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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will keep you on the edge of your seat. Don't let your fears take hold of you as you dive into this addictive series. Love thrillers with a paranormal twist? The entire Oracle trilogy is available on Audible. Listen now on Audible. And Mr. Fucci just wanted to make a short statement. I just want to say I plead I get the, uh, and I'm sorry for the Bailey family and my family. Aiden Fucci pleads guilty to murdering Tristan Bailey, stabbing her to death 114 times on Mother's Day in 2021. His case is close to concluding, but what about his mothers? I'm Ann Jeanette Levy and welcome back to Law and Crime's Sidebar podcast. Aiden Fucci will more than likely spend the rest of his life in prison for murdering Tristan Bailey.

He admitted on Monday to killing her in just a horrific. manner. He'll be sentenced at a later date, but his mother also faces charges. Crystal Lane Smith is charged with a third degree felony of tampering with evidence, and that's a serious charge. Prosecutors say they have video of Lane Smith, washing a pair of her son's jeans that later tested positive for blood. Joining me to discuss what's next for Crystal Lane Smith is a state attorney from Florida, Dave Aaronberg. Dave, welcome to Sidebar. Thanks for coming on. Thanks for having me. Now, you obviously are in the West Palm Beach, So this case, you don't have any connection to it other than you're a prosecutor for the state of

Florida. Let's just clear that up right off the bat, right? Correct. So what do you see coming next for Crystal Lane Smith? Aden Fucci has pleaded guilty to a horrific crime, as I mentioned. This young girl, she was 13 years old, stabbed 114 times. I mean, it just boggles the mind that one human being could treat another like this. Now mom is still in trouble for washing his jeans following the homicide, or at least that's the accusation. So tell us what comes next for her in your opinion. Yeah, well, the key bit of information that we need to know is not just that she washed the jeans, but she knew that it was evidence of a crime. If she just innocently washed the jeans, she would not be charged. But because criminals are often stupid, she mentioned, she said to her son

at the police station. Hey, you know, there was blood. Did you get rid of it all? And something to that effect. So it was proof that she knew that her son had committed this crime. And she knew what she was doing when she washed the blood out of the jeans. And because of that, she was charged with tampering with evidence. She could have also been charged with accessory after the fact, either one, but both are really serious crimes. And because her son was charged with a capital crime, the most serious of them all, she could actually be charged with a first degree felony that'll put her in prison for up to 30 years. So she's going to go through some things and rightly so. And just the fact that she obviously seemed to have some knowledge, as you mentioned, with the

statement at the police department, that her son did something really horrendous, really awful. I mean, that's the conclusion that you draw from that statement. Am I wrong? No, you're right. Because of that statement, that gives her the knowledge element, which is crucial in charging her with such a crime. Because if she innocently just washed her son's jeans, like many parents often do, she wouldn't be charged with a crime.

But she said at the police station, something to the effect of, hey, did you, you know, wash things away? or did you leave anything behind, and then she said there was blood, something to that effect. And that's crucial because that puts the mindset that you need into play, which is that she tampered with evidence, that she was an accessory after the fact. And now she will be facing serious criminal charges. And you know, it's a good thing because there is an outcry in this country over the behavior of these children and their parents seem to go away with impunity.

Well, it's like the era of responsibility now. We see with the Ethan Crumbly parents being charged in Michigan, and now we're seeing it with this individual because it's about time that parents are held accountable for the actions of their awful kids. And these kids didn't just get born like that. They had to be raised in an environment that led to these horrific acts. One thing that I found really interesting from Aidan Fucci's hearing, what wasn't really a hearing, but it was the day. of trial, jury selection was supposed to begin, he comes in, he pleads guilty to the murder charge. There's no deal here. His defense attorney said that all of their overtures, all of their plea offers by the state had been rejected. They're like no deals for this kid. We're not

doing that. So he faces anywhere from a minimum of 40 years in prison to life in prison. I see him getting life in prison. I don't know about you, but that's what I think. So if they're rejecting plea offers from his attorneys, why would the state even think about dealing with mom or coming up with some type of negotiated deal for mom? Well, Angie, I keep in mind, under Florida law, what happens is a juvenile is entitled to a parole review. It's not labeled parole, but it's a review in 25 years. And so what this defendant did by pleading guilty was to play the law game or his review in 25 years. He wants to show the court that he is now remorseful, that he's taking responsibility for his actions. Apparently, he is thinking that he has a better

chance of getting released in 25 years than getting acquitted at trial. Because if he keeps fighting this at trial and is found guilty, he's less likely to be released in 25 years. He'll probably get the full life sentence. So that's what happened here. He's playing the long game. as far as his mother, his mother's going to have to face severe consequences because it's, I mean, we've had it up to here with parents who enable their children to commit such atrocities. And here, it wasn't just that this kid was obviously raised in a really bad environment that led to this, but that his mother actively tried to hide evidence of the crime, actively tried to deprive our community and the victim's family of a measure of justice. And to me, that just compounds the tragedy. And she deserves to be charged the police extend the law, and I expect her to be charged more seriously than with a third-degree felony. I think it's going to go up, perhaps, to a first-degree felony. But she's already charged. So you think they might amend the charge? Oh, they could, yes. Because when you're charged with a capital crime as her son has been,

and now he's pled guilty to it, you could be charged with the first-degree felony for tampering with evidence. You can be charged with a first-degree felony for being an accessory after the fact. So I don't think this is over for the mother. I think it's just to begin. So back to what you were saying about the age of accountability, parents need to realize they are responsible for the actions of their children. I mean, you have a duty. It's your child. Yeah, your child might do some things. You can't control everything your child does. But it kind of makes you wonder if she's washing jeans after a homicide, and that is the allegation in order to cover up her son's crime, what else has she done? Has Aiden Fucci or had Aiden Fucci ever had any consequences

for negative actions. That's a great point. And what else did she do to cover up the crime? Did she do something else to help him evade police, help try to maybe did she try to lie to police as well? I mean, these are other crimes. And, you know, I would hope that there'd be a full investigation and not just leave it here because, you know, these parents deserve to be held accountable.

They're clearly being held accountable in the court of public opinion, but it's also important that they'd be held accountable in a court of justice. And so let's get just your final prediction, Dave Ehrenberg. I think that she will take a plea herself. She'll be adjudicated guilty and she'll have to serve some jail or prison time. It won't be the maximum. It won't be if it stays as a third degree felony, she can get up to five years in prison. But since this is likely her first offense, she doesn't score that high.

If it can get up to a first degree felony, she can get up to 30 years in prison. My belief is she'll probably plead guilty. she will take a lesser sentence and have to serve some jail time and she'll be able to think about her actions and about what a terrible parent she is and a terrible human being she is somewhere in a prison cell. Briefly, I want to read a statement from the Bailey 7. This is the family of Tristan Bailey and I'm only going to read a short portion of it. It's a lengthy statement. But they said foremost, we would like to give thanks to God since this nightmare began. We have had the love and support of so many. We know so many have lifted Tristan.

our family and her friends up in prayer, the members of our community have been simply exceptional in the support they have given us. This morning's surprise change of plea, this was from Monday, obviously this statement, brings our family significant relief with the detailed and exemplary investigative work of the St. John's County Sheriff's Office, along with the trial preparation by the 7th Judicial Circuit State Attorney's Office. So that's just a little bit of the statement from the family who is going through something awful and something no family should ever have to go through. Dave Aaronberg, thank you so much for coming on. We really appreciate your time and your expertise. Thank you for having me. And that's it for this edition of Law and Crime Sidebar

podcast. It is produced by Michael Dininger and Sam Goldberg. Bobby Zoki is our director of YouTube. Alyssa Fisher handles our bookings and Kira Bronson does our social media. You can download and listen to Sidebar on Apple, Spotify, Google, or wherever else you get your book. podcasts, and of course, you can always watch it on Law and Crimes YouTube channel. I'm Ann Janette Levy, and I will see you next time.