Two months before Damarius McGriggs helped his girlfriend savagely murder own her mother, the two met at a McDonald’s drive-thru in Crown Point, Indiana. The relationship escalated within weeks after Alyssa Barrett told his Damarius she was pregnant with his child.
Alyssa was telling Damarius that her mother wanted her to have an abortion. The pregnancy became a tool for Alyssa to manipulate Damarius into killing her mother, 54-year-old DeCarol Deloney-Cain.
He was a perfect piece of clay for her manipulative hands. This girl played him like a banjo, the defense attorney said during trial.
Defense attorney Scott King, who along with Lakeisha Murdaugh represented Damarius, explained that his client didn’t have any previous criminal history. He alleged Alyssa had written a script for her mother’s homicide long before Demarius even entered the picture.
A short time before DeCarol was killed, Alyssa told Demarius that her mother, a longtime flight attendant, was pushing her to have an abortion. Alyssa and DeMarius lured DeCarol on July 3, 2014, to the basement of her Crown Point home by turning off the electricity. Demarius hit DeCarol and placed a pillow over her head. Alyssa then stabbed her multiple times.
The couple got the help of two friends to put DeCarol’s body in the trunk of her car and drove it to 21st Avenue and Mississippi Street in Gary, Indiana.
They all got into a second vehicle drove to an ATM and took out money from DeCarol’s bank account. Alyssa convinced Demarius to buy her a ring at a jewelry store at the mall with money they stole after the murder.
On July 7, 2014, DeCarol’s body was found in the trunk of her car wrapped in black plastic bags and bound with tape by her hands and feet.
Alyssa’s manipulation continued after prosecutors filed charges. A letter at some point emerged where Demarius allegedly confessed to the crime and exonerated Alyssa of any wrongdoing.
Handwriting analysis was done on the letter and compared with samples from Demarius and Alyssa. It was determined that it couldn’t have been written by Demarius. However, the analysis could also not determine if Alyssa wrote it.
While the defense spent much of its time focusing on Alyssa, Todd Deloney raised his voice as he told the court he was there to look Demarius in the eyes.
“You see what I’m saying, you didn’t have to kill my sister,” Todd said. “You know it.”
He told Demarius to remember his eyes while he is in prison. An emotional Deloney slowly walked out of the courtroom before returning for the rest of the hearing.
“Damarius, you have wrecked our family’s whole life,” Todd Deloney said, looking directly at Damarius McGriggs. “You didn’t have to kill my sister and you know it.”
Demarius nodded his head slightly as Todd spoke.
Alyssa was the one who put everything into motion that led to DeCarol’s murder. She said Demarius was the one who inflicted the injuries. She was described as a “highly disturbed young lady,” who set the plan in motion and used Demarius and two other young men to carry it out.
Alyssa was sentenced to 50 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to her mother’s murder on January 26, 2016.
Demarius apologized to DeCarol Deloney-Cain’s family and his own.
“I know this is not who I am,” Demarius said. He told the court he was willing to accept the consequences of his actions.
Demarius McGriggs was sentenced on April 18, 2016 to 40 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit the murder. He will have to serve at least 75 percent of the sentence.
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