Police mistake causes mistrial for Raleigh man charged in toddler’s death
The murder trial for a man charged with killing a toddler ended in a mistrial this month after the Raleigh Police Department failed to submit evidence to the defense on time.
Torrance Adams was at home with his mother’s boyfriend, Michael Buchanan, when he stopped breathing and was taken to the hospital Feb. 14, 2017.
Buchanan said the 22-month-old choked on a waffle. Medical workers spent hours treating him for respiratory distress.
Buchanan, 26, was charged with child abuse after doctors discovered Torrance’s fractured skull. He was charged with murder after the toddler died. His trial started earlier this month.
Buchanan’s attorney said in court they planned to show Torrance choked on a waffle and then hit his head on the sink.
Judge Paul Ridgeway declared a mistrial April 16, ruling “a fair and impartial trial has become impossible due to prejudice to the defendant as a result of the late disclosure of the evidence,” according to court records.
The judge also lowered Buchanan’s bail to $250,000 and ordered electronic monitoring in his parents’ house with no contact with the victim’s family or extended family.
Cell phone data misplaced
The evidence involved was data from the child’s mother Marquise McCall’s cell phone. She gave consent to extract data from her phone March 13, 2019, which was placed on a hard drive in a Raleigh police detective’s desk and not uploaded to the department’s portal where such data is usually placed.
More than two years later, on April 1 2021, Assistant District Attorney Melanie Shekita asked police for the data, but they only found it around 7 a.m. April 16, five days into the trial.
The judge suspended proceedings to review the information. Buchanan’s lawyers then argued the contents were relevant to the defense and moved to have the case dismissed or declared a mistrial.
The case is expected to be tried again because it could have provided an alternative cause of death, explanation for motive, intent or circumstances of death.
“I am not going to make any comments about this since the case is still pending at this time,” Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said. “We anticipate that the case will be reset for trial.”
The court also found the detective’s explanation for misplacing the hard drive with the data credible. Misplacing the hard drive was negligent, but there was no evidence of intentional misconduct, according to court documents.
Mother, family frustrated
“I don’t understand how that wasn’t submitted with all the evidence,” said McCall, Torrance’s mother. “I just don’t understand a lot of what went on.”
“It wasn’t just frustrating; it was hurtful,” McCall said. “because I thought I would be getting closure, and now I have to start all over again.”
McCall still hopes the DA’s office will bring justice for her son. The phone records won’t change the outcome of the case, she said.
Joyce Adams, Torrance’s aunt, said she and her brother William Adams, Torrance’s father, are frustrated and angry.
“Why didn’t they have everything together?” she asked.
Adams and her brother are traveling back and forth from the Washington, D.C., area for the case, she said.
“His main concern is: what is next? Will they have all the information that is needed?” Adams said. “I am praying that they do. He is ready for it to be over.”
It is stressful to be far away and feel like you don’t know what is going on, she said.
If you suspect a child is being abused or died from maltreatment, state law requires you to report that information to the local county Department of Social Services. For help recognizing child abuse as well as resources for parents go to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services website.
This story was originally published April 24, 2021 at 10:49 AM.
