The Misery Machine - The Case of Amari Nicholson

Starting point is 00:00:00 Amari Jordan Nicholson was born on October 26, 2018 in Nevada to parents Giorgio Hayes and Taylor Nicholson. People who knew him recalled him as a calm, fun, and sweet toddler. He was an adorable little boy with curly brown hair and big brown eyes. Pictures of Amari showed him as a happy child, often smiling and cheerful. Amari's favorite TV character was Mickey Mouse. According to Taylor, her son loved pizza, oranges, and watching Coke. Emory enjoyed dancing around him music and was known to be patient with everyone and was just a happy go lucky little boy. Jacques Nals, who was an ex-boyfriend of Taylor's, recalled he was just a

Starting point is 00:00:43 calm, sweet baby. He was never difficult, never. If you heard him cry, it's because he needed something. Taylor and Jacques had split up the previous summer, but they remained on relatively good terms. However, Amari's biological parents had a strained relationship and they had broken up before Amari was born. Taylor had claimed that Giorgio was physically violent to her while pregnant. Because of their disdain for each other, they did not have much contact. Though Taylor had sole custody of their son, Giorgio had made attempts to have visitation with Amari during the holiday season of 2021. Now, Giorgio and Taylor had been working on reestablishing a connection for Amari's sake, but progress between them was slow. At the time of our story, Taylor was living with new boyfriend

Starting point is 00:01:28 Terrell Rhodes and the Emerald Suites located east of the Las Vegas Strip. Taylor's mother, Carrie Howard, did not have a high opinion of Terrell. She thought Terrell was on drugs and warned Taylor not to date him. Carrie had known Terrell and his family for 12 years and felt he wouldn't be a good partner to her daughter or a good stepfather to Amari. However, Taylor chose not to take her mother's advice, even though Terrell had a criminal record. He had been released from prison following convictions for burglary and robbery the year prior to the start of their relationship. Carrie had also suspected that Terrell had been violent with Taylor and Amari, and she tried to get social services involved as a result. On June 10th, 2020, a call was placed to the Clark County

Starting point is 00:02:11 Department of Family Services reporting bruises and suspicion of neglect of Amari. DFS conducted an investigation, but the case was officially closed just a few days later on July 14th of 20. Carrie was dumbfounded that the couple hadn't been drug tested as she believed it to be a contributing factor in the instability and violence that was taking place in the home. In May of 2021, Taylor was traveling to Colorado to visit her mother as Carrie had suffered a serious dog bite injury and was recovering from surgery. Taylor left Amari and Terrell's care while she was away caring for her mother. According to Carrie, Amari was supposed to be with Taylor when she came to care for her. In fact, she had bought both of them a one-way ticket to Colorado as they

Starting point is 00:02:55 were supposed to stay at least until the end of May. Instead, Amari disappeared on May 5th, 2021 while under Terrell's supervision. Upon learning that Amari had gone missing, Taylor called the police and rushed back home from Colorado, believing that her son had been kidnapped from their home. Over the course of the investigation into Amari's disappearance, interviews with Taylor and Terrell seemed to contradict their original version of events. Terrell told reporters, We had just woke up. I had just fed him breakfast, and I was in the room on my phone laying down. He's in there playing with his toys, and all of a sudden there's a knock on the door. And it was a woman saying that she was Taylor's baby daddy's sister. And she says she's there to

Starting point is 00:03:40 pick up my stepson. I never seen any, any sides of Taylor's baby daddy's family, so I never, I never recognized her. So then I go to proceed to, okay, I'm going to pack him a bag up, pack some of his belongings, and when that happens, I turn around to call Taylor to tell her if this is, was this really prearranged? And as I'm doing that, the sister says she don't need anything for my stepson. They got everything they need for him and basically just took off. An Amber Alert was issued but was subsequently canceled as the state of Nevada requires

Starting point is 00:04:12 both a vehicle and an abductor description to meet the criteria for an Amber Alert. Since there was no known vehicle involved in an alleged unknown family member was believed to be responsible for the abduction, the state of Nevada Amber Alert criteria wasn't met. According to Taylor, police told her the reason for canceling the alert was because the matter was now for the courts, as they believed it was a family issue and not an abduction by a stranger. One of the officers had called me while his partner was talking to my boyfriend, and we spoke on the phone. I told him what was going on. He asked when it was the last time that I spoke to my child's father, and I told him it was about three days ago,

Starting point is 00:04:53 but we had got into an argument. I'm sitting here telling him. He's not allowed to be around my son, and the cop took it as I told him it was okay for him to take him. So the cop canceled out the Amber Alert and said that I have to. get my son back by going to court when he was taking from my house. When the reporter questioned Terrell as to why he would let Amari be taken by someone he didn't know, he replied that Taylor told him someone would be there to collect Amari. But he just didn't know who.

Starting point is 00:05:26 In the beginning, Taylor claimed that she never said that. However, the couple would go back and forth on whether or not Taylor did or did not say someone would be coming by for Amari. Taylor initially stuck to Terrell's version of events. A couple shifted the focus away from Terrell by suggesting that Gergio's family stalked them until they figured out where she and Amari lived. Taylor and Gergio weren't on the best of terms with each other.

Starting point is 00:05:53 Taylor asserted that Terrell didn't have anything to do with her son's disappearance, placing the blame squarely on Amari's father. Taylor would also complain to a reporter that Gergio was getting media attention without playing a meaningful role in his son's life. Taylor continued to stand by Terrell and came to his defense when rumors began to fly and the public began to look more closely at him. She told reporters, it's inaccurate. It's a bunch of strangers just reading comments and not understanding the situation, not understanding the background and just trying to put their two cents into it when it's all inaccurate.

Starting point is 00:06:24 All this negative, hateful energy of pointing fingers at me and him can be put into trying to find our baby and bring him home instead of causing more drama. I mean, we're hurting enough. We're all distraught over this. were a complete mess breaking down. Despite the public suspicion, Taylor would not waver in her support of Terrell. The kidnapping narrative began to crumble, however, when Taylor later admitted to reporters that she and Terrell had been arguing prior to her leaving for Colorado.

Starting point is 00:06:53 She said that telling him someone would be by to pick up Amari was basically an empty threat meant to annoy him. She hadn't been specific about when, or even if, a pickup would occur. Terrell was upset about Taylor leaving for Colorado, and there were whispers of an impending breakup before Taylor had even left. Taylor had then acknowledged to reporters that the situation was confusing and would lead people to believe that she and Terrell were lying about the events that took place. The couple's conflicting stories of the events were putting eyes on them both, not just Terrell.

Starting point is 00:07:23 People were looking closer at Taylor now. And despite the incongruence at that time, Taylor still maintained that Terrell had nothing to do with her son being missing. When the news reached Carrie, she was quite upset with her daughter. Taylor hadn't contacted her to tell her what had happened, and Carrie had to hear the news from her own father. The grandmother was beside herself with grief that Taylor had left Amari and Terrell's care. She was also confused as to why Taylor didn't take Amari with her to Colorado like they had originally talked about. During an interview, Taylor declined to say why she had opted not to take Amari to Colorado with her. According to Carrie, all Taylor had to do was ask, and they would have helped her if she needed them. A rift had regrettably began to form between the two, and it didn't appear that mother and daughter had much contact during the investigation.

Starting point is 00:08:15 In fact, May 8th, 2021 was the last time Carrie and Taylor had spoken while Amari was still missing. They were at odds over the whole situation and hadn't been talking to each other as Taylor continued to stand by Terrell. On May 7th, 2021, Taylor told reporters, Terrell loves Amari like it's, like he's his own. He's been the one who's been taking care of Amari. Amari loves Terrell just as much at this point. You can't sit here and say anything negative for a man to be taking care of another man's baby. He never handed the baby off to anybody.

Starting point is 00:08:52 Terrell remarked that it was sick that people were making assumptions about what happened to Amari and thinking that he had been involved. He was annoyed that. people believe that he was gaslighting Taylor into believing him. During this particular speech, Terrell avoided looking at the camera and would shift his gaze to his feet or off into the distance. Still, Taylor wouldn't hear anyone would criticize Terrell. The message to the public is, you know, we miss our baby boy, and if he's watching, you know, mommy and daddy loves you and we hope you get home soon and safely to the public,

Starting point is 00:09:23 just, you know, share our posts on Facebook, share the news reports, and try to get get the word out and his picture around and keep on a lookout to be able to find, you know, where he is and to be able to bring him home back safe and soon. My mom got attacked by a dog and it chewed her tendon and her ankle, so she had to have two hours of surgery and over 60 stitches, so she was crippled, not able to walk. So I left on Friday to go to help take care of her, and I had only been gone four days before I woke up to a phone call saying my son was gone. And when I found that out, I hopped in the car and drove two and a half hours to get to the airport

Starting point is 00:10:02 since it's a small little country city and hopped on the next plane and landed in Vegas around 2.30 and then that's when the search was able to happen. I had called police at 7 in the morning to be able to report him as the missing child. And the responders came out and one called and spoke to me over the phone. The other talked to my boyfriend about the situation of what happened. It was a, they had a misunderstanding and canceled the search and so my son was missing for eight hours with nobody looking for him. And then when I came in town and they were finally able to speak to me is when they finally were able to report him as missing. And they've searched everything and trying to do what they can.

Starting point is 00:10:46 We just wish it was, you know, a little bit more. From my knowledge, I was already notified that somebody would be coming over, but I didn't know when, I didn't expect when, and then when somebody did come, they notified themselves as my girlfriend, baby daddy's sister. And they said they were here to pick up more and notified me that it was already prearranged. So from my understanding from already been told by my girlfriend that somebody would be over. I wasn't told who, I wasn't told when, but I still had that in the back of my mind. So when that person knocked on the door, that's what my mind recommended right back to.

Starting point is 00:11:39 So that's who I thought was going to pick up Amari. And as I'm going to call my girlfriend and pack his bag at the same time, she says that they already got everything that they need for him. And I don't need to pack anything. He'd be fine. And she reculated and she, she, proceeded out the door. And as I'm on the phone trying to call my girlfriend, I, my last look of her was just walking down the stairs. So I closed the door and I start calling my girlfriend over and over until she answered the phone and asked her, was anybody supposed to come that day to pick up tomorrow and she said no. I said the lady just came to the door and says that she's her baby daddy sister.

Starting point is 00:12:26 And they just picked up a warrant. And she started freaking out. That's when I ran out the door and immediately start coming the area, looking around, see what I can end. I ain't see nothing. Bring her our son back wherever you at, bringing back immediately.

Starting point is 00:12:46 It's disgusting. I mean, he's a helpless two-year-old. He's tiny and can't fight back. He doesn't know where he's at, doesn't know where mommy and daddy are because we're the only two people that he knows. And he needs medicine. He, you know, he's scared.

Starting point is 00:13:02 He doesn't know who these people are. And we just asked to bring him back safe and sound because he doesn't deserve this. This is not okay. And what's really sickening is that people is making assumptions, thinking that I have something to do with it, that I have heard manipulated in some way Which that's sickening in to me also because he love us.

Starting point is 00:13:32 I mean, we have never done nothing like that too. Apparently not now. So we're just waiting, hoping something pops into the air. Someone slips up and he's able to return home. So we're going to try to plan out a search party for him, see how that works. How we're going to do the best we can and do whatever we can. to find him. We're going to create the search party on Facebook and a Facebook event that's going to be

Starting point is 00:14:01 public and we try to advise anyone who's free and not doing anything to come out and try to help us find him, come through the city, see if he's anywhere in sight. We have a few ideas where he could be and the police are just saying that it's an ongoing investigation so they're not able to share much and we can't share all the details either because it's still ongoing and we were you know don't want to interrupt the process of trying to find him. And so we're just waiting and trying to figure this out on our own as well. All right. Thank you guys. Thank you.

Starting point is 00:14:38 Now, how Taylor's side of the family came across in the media was chaotic at best. While Gurgio's side of the family came across quite the opposite, clear and proactive. Gerego's sisters, Yolanda Everett, and Dierrika Perryman were careful in their comments regarding Taylor. They didn't want a speculator, throw unnecessary. animosity in an already tense situation. Yolanda and Deerica firmly denied that their family had anything to do with Amari being missing, but admitted to a strained relationship with his mother. Sisters publicly affirmed that despite the difficulties between them, they've been more than willing to work with Taylor to help her find Amari. The sisters were active with law enforcement

Starting point is 00:15:17 efforts and participated in a live news conference six days into the search, asking anyone with any information pertaining to Amari to come forward. Several search teams, had been involved going door to door and handing out flyers in partnership with Nevada child seekers. The reward of $30,000 was offered to anyone who could bring Amari home safely. On May 11, 2021, sometime after the news conference, Terrell finally broke down. After being confronted with evidence of soiled clothes and blood found on the wall of his apartment, he finally took responsibility for Amari's disappearance. Torell admitted that he had struck Amari several times with a closed fist after the boy had wet himself.

Starting point is 00:16:01 Amari stopped breathing and he tried to perform CPR, but he couldn't revive the boy. Before finally telling the truth to authorities, Torel held up the facade that Amari had been kidnapped. On May 8, 2021, three days into the search, he told reporters, I just want him back where he needs to be, back with us. This is not a finger-pointing game. Our son is really missing. Less than a week later, the truth would come out and prove him to be a coward and a liar. After coming clean, Terrell suddenly lost his composure.

Starting point is 00:16:38 He began crying, babbling incoherently, and began to mentally break down. He attempted to grab a police officer's gun. Terrell lunged over the table at the seated officer while a standing officer was attempting and console him. He struggled with the officer's holster, but the seated officer immediately had Terrell's hand gripped tight to restrain his access. Two more officers from outside the room came in to assist the other officers and restrain Terrell. Right now we are getting a look at the moment. A murder suspect grabbed a gun from police officers as he was being interviewed. But Terrell Rhodes is accused of killing two-year-old Omari Nicholson. Now, police say during the interview,

Starting point is 00:17:19 As you see here, Rhodes gets violent asking officers to kill him. Right now, he's facing attempted murder charges after pulling the gun on the officers. Now, thankfully, no one was hurt in this confrontation. The grand jury evidence also shows the map that Rhodes drew, allegedly pointing officers to Amari's body. According to court documents, Rhodes told officers that he killed Amari after he wet his pants. Terrell was arrested in charge with first-degree murder, two counts of attempted murder, four counts of assaulting a police officer with a deadly weapon,

Starting point is 00:17:51 and four counts of resisting a police officer with a deadly weapon. Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo was shown where to find Amari's body during the confession. However, Torell hadn't been completely honest in regards to what he had done with his body at that time. So the search for Amari continued after Torel's arrest. Law enforcement believed they would not locate a body in this case, but Torell eventually drew them a map, as shown in the video. On May 12, 2021, Amari's body was found buried in a shallow grave at Paradise Road and East Twain Avenue, near a brick wall between Siegel Suites and McDonald's. This location was right around the corner from the complex they were living in.

Starting point is 00:18:31 Some reports have suggested that Amari was found in a dumpster. Terrell has not spoken publicly to reporters since his official arrest. When Carrie found out what Terrell had done, she told the reporter she didn't think Terrell would go as far as to end Amari's life, but she wasn't shocked that he had done so. After all, Carrie had spoken against the relationship from the start and had called for an investigation into suspected violence in their home the previous year. Midday, the mother of a two-year-old allegedly murdered by her boyfriend opening up about her heartbreaking loss. Marie Nicholson's body was found earlier this week near Paradise in Twain. Taylor Nicholson says right now she's trying her best to cope and remember

Starting point is 00:19:12 the good times. you know it's getting difficult you still see him running around you still see everything you still hear everything and now we just got to live through what he loves the most to keep his spirit close to all of us Metro police say Terrell Rhodes was taking care of Amari while Taylor was in Colorado caring for her mom and an arrest report Rhodes admitted to hitting Amaro several times after the toddler urinated on himself police say Rhodes and Taylor were dating and just broke up before Amari's death.

Starting point is 00:19:46 When Taylor heard the truth, it was the final blow to her trust and confidence in Terrell. She felt betrayed. However, the time had come for her to take responsibility for the fact that she had stubbornly stood by Terrell's aversion of events knowing she was never serious about anyone coming to pick up Amari. The public had already been looking at Taylor with a measure of suspicion, and the truth coming out finally put more focus on Taylor's handling of events. If Taylor knew there was never a plan to actually have someone pick up Amari,

Starting point is 00:20:19 why did she believe Terrell's version of the events? Why didn't she doubt Terrell's story? Instead of feeling guilty, Taylor took a defensive stance. She felt she couldn't fully grieve her son in peace and that people she once knew, people she hadn't spoken to in months or even years, were judging her. And in some cases, hating on her for how she was dealing with such a public tragedy.

Starting point is 00:20:44 Taylor said she was always someone who kept her feelings inside and did not like to display what she was dealing with to the outside world. Taylor was advised to stay home, out of the view of the media, as she may not be safe with the amount of hate she was receiving. Terrell was held in Clark County Detention Center following his arrest. This trial would be delayed and pushed back several times, although the reasons for these setbacks have not been made clear. Torell waited around in prison, riding the delays for three years before accepting a plea deal three months before his trial. Torell was officially sentenced on July 30th, 2024. His attorney Robert Langford negotiated a deal of 20 years to life for the murder charge and a sentence of an additional one to six years for each of the assault charges. A sentence of 20 years to life would mean Torell wouldn't be eligible for parole until 2041,

Starting point is 00:21:38 excluding time for the additional years added for the charges he accumulated. for resisting his arrest. According to Attorney Langford, his client is mentally tortured every day by what he did. Amari's father believed that Terrell should have had to face the death penalty for what he had done to his son Amari. He said, yeah, he should look death in the face like Amari did. It's only fair. It's only fair that you look death in the face like the child did. Prosecutors said on June of 2021 that they would not pursue the death penalty against Terrell. Terrell wouldn't be the only one finding themselves in hot water with law enforcement that year. Taylor was arrested in June of 2021 on charges of solicitation and carrying a concealed weapon.

Starting point is 00:22:23 She had met a man at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino who happened to be an undercover officer. This man chatted her up and bought her a drink at the bar. They had discussed a transaction for a list activities and, once terms were agreed upon, walked together to a room within the hotel. There, Taylor was met by officers who placed her under arrest. Her purse contained brass knuckles and condoms. Taylor was held at the Clark County Detention Center on a $5,000 bail. She waived her right to a trial and pled no contest to solicitation in carrying a concealed weapon. The judge must have taken pity on Taylor as she was given time served for the incident.

Starting point is 00:23:06 Amari's tragic story had a significant impact on the community around where they lived. The citizens of Las Vegas were upset with DFS's response to the CA and neglect complaint. They were bothered by the short length of investigation given to the complaint and the canceling of the Amber Alert when he first went missing. Too often reports are made to CPS agencies that yield no findings only for a serious incident to occur a short time after. Carrie, for one, believed that had they looked further into the complaint that it occurred in July of 2020, that Amari would still be alive. The community felt changes needed to to be made on how the department handled child endangerment complaints and the criteria for

Starting point is 00:23:45 Amber Alerts across the state of Nevada. Many felt the investigation put forth by the Clark County DFS wasn't well conducted. Further community involvement in this case had produced a petition for new legislation dubbed Amari's law that requests the following issues be looked at. Amber Alerts should be made for any and all missing children under the age of 18, whether or not a vehicle is involved and person of interest description is available. An alert should be sent out with a description of the child and the last person they were seen with regardless of whether or not they are family to the missing. When a case is reported with Clark County DFS, the cases should have a more thorough investigation

Starting point is 00:24:25 done by speaking with anyone with concerns, including family, neighbors, and friends to understand the scope of the threat to the well-being of the child. There should be more than one visit from an agency representative if a report is made, even if evidence wasn't seen the first time. Parents should be held accountable for leaving their children in the care of someone known to be violent or otherwise neglectful. Our County DFS cannot deny that there is a problem when every week there are multiple stories of a child suffering violence

Starting point is 00:24:53 at the hand of a non-blood-related parent like caregiver. Of course, there will always be exceptions. When supervision is performed by a non-romantic caregiver such as a babysitter, daycare, or foster care provider, the evidence will clear the parents of any ethical wrongdoing. But a romantic partner should be subject to higher scrutiny and some accountability be placed on the biological parent who made that choice when it results in harm to their child.

Starting point is 00:25:17 The community also wanted to work on building more outreach programs for families and victims of violence in Amari's name, teaming up with other nonprofits in different areas of the country to establish a wider network to assist families in need. Unfortunately, it appears the petition didn't gain the traction it needed for further support. The public did respond with several events to honor Amari's memory. Memorial T-shirts were made, and a candlelight vigil with balloons, toys, and stuffed animals

Starting point is 00:25:45 was held outside the Siegel Suites on May 13, 2021, not far from where Amari's body was finally found. Another public memorial and balloon release was held on May 17, 2021. Again, the misery machine does not condone or promote balloon releases. A mobile memorial starting on Cambridge Street was held on May 19th, 2021 for those who missed the original memorials. People wrote messages and taped pictures of Amari to their cars and drove through the neighborhood blasting music. Another vigil was held a year later on May 13th, 2022 to honor the one-year anniversary of Amari's passing near Paradise Road in East Twain Avenues close to where his body was found. Community members did not easily

Starting point is 00:26:34 forget Amari Nicholson. A song called Young Amari Song by rap artists called SET was dedicated to Amari. We'll have a link to it in our description if you're interested in checking it out. The Nicholson family did not set up fundraisers for the funeral and burial expenses. A few fundraisers were set up by people claiming to be family members, but they were just scammers trying to take advantage of the family's grief and profit from a public tragedy. Those scam sites were rightfully and promptly shut down. Amari was officially laid to rest in the new Mesquite City Cemetery in Mesquite Nevada. His headstone contains a portrait of himself on the front and the poem

Starting point is 00:27:17 When I Must Leave You by Helen Steiner Rice on the back, which reads, When I must leave you for a little while, please always carry along with you a great big smile. Please do not grieve and shed wild tears and hug your sorrow to you through the years. But start out bravely with a gallant smile, and for my sake and in my name, live on and do all things the same. Feed not your loneliness on empty days, but fill each waking hour in useful ways. Reach out your hand in comfort and in cheer, and I in turn will comfort you and hold you near. And never, never be afraid to die, for I am waiting for you in the sky.

The Misery Machine - The Case of Amari Nicholson

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