KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The defense attorney for Corrinne O'Connor, a woman charged in the death of her 5-year-old son, Grayson O'Connor, intends to use an insanity defense in the case.
O'Connor's attorney filed motions Wednesday saying he "intends to rely upon the defense of mental disease or defect negating a culpable mental state at our upcoming trial."
He also requested to push back the trial date, which is currently set for June 23, 2025. His reasoning is that the "Defendant's expert [witness] cannot complete her evaluation and write a formal report in time for our current trial setting."
O'Connor was originally charged back in January 2024 with one count of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child resulting in death, which is a Class A felony. A grand jury indicted her on the same charge in March 2024 and her initial arraignment in the case was during that same month.
She pleaded not guilty to the felony charge during her arraignment in Jackson County Circuit Court.
O’Connor's $100,000 bond was modified from cash-only to a 10% surety bond prior to her indictment and arraignment.
TIMELINE | Death investigation of 5-year-old Grayson O'Connor
O’Connor face10 to 30 years in prison if convicted.
Grayson fell to his death on Nov. 27, 2023, from a 17th-floor window at the Grand Boulevard Apartments in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, that had been tampered with, according to an eviction petition filed against Grayson's mother. His body was found around 11 a.m. in an alley by a passerby.
He died just one month before his sixth birthday.
KCPD records indicate that officers had received eight calls for service to O’Connor’s apartment since Grayson was born, including six involving a disturbance and one for an “emotionally disturbed person.”
She was evicted from the apartment during a hearing in February 2024.
The KSHB 41 I-Team discovered that the Missouri Department of Social Services' Children's Division closed Grayson's case two weeks before his death.
The state received seven calls about Grayson's welfare from 2017 to 2023.
O’Connor's next hearing is scheduled for June 13.
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