Man charged in death of Zoey Felix, 5, was 'smirking' in court, says woman who helped Zoey

A Shawnee County District Court judge banned cameras from the courtroom Wednesday for all pretrial hearings for Mickel W. Cherry, 25, charged with killing 5-year-old Zoey Felix in Topeka.

Judge Jessica Heinen made that ruling in a courtroom where those present included Sheryl Tyree, who said she took care of Zoey in September after the girl was left roaming unsupervised.

Tyree told The Capital-Journal she felt angry at Cherry, whom she said she saw "smirking" at Wednesday's hearing.

"I think they're wrong," she said of the decision to not allow cameras. "I think the public has a right to know."

Any decision on whether to allow cameras in court for the trial would be made later, should the case proceed that far, Heinen said.

Zoey Felix's mother was among those present Wednesday

Tyree watched Wednesday's hearing from the courtroom gallery wearing a yellow Pokemon T-shirt that said "Zoey" on the back, with angel wings on either side of the name.

Zoey's mother, Heather Felix, was also among those present. Accompanied by a man and a woman, she sat sobbing in a seat in the gallery's back row before proceedings began.

Cherry wore an inmate jumpsuit to Wednesday's hearing, where his hands were cuffed in front.

At least eight uniformed law enforcement officers were present throughout the hearing, where Heinen made rulings regarding various motions that had been filed by the defense.

Cherry is represented by attorneys with the Kansas Death Penalty Defense Unit. Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay hasn't announced yet whether he will pursue the death penalty.

More: Zoey Felix, 5, was killed October 2 in Topeka. Here's complete coverage of her death.

Heinen denied a motion by Cherry's attorneys asking her to impose a gag order in the case, but made it clear she expected everyone involved to follow state rules regarding professional conduct.

She made that ruling after Kagay suggested such an order wasn't necessary while stressing that he personally serves as media liaison for his office.

Heinen acknowledged early in on Wednesday's hearing that she was a former law school classmate and is friends with the wife of one of the defense attorneys, Peter Conley, adding that they haven't spoken "in some time."

She said she still thought she would be able to impartially hear the case. The prosecution and defense responded that they were OK with Heinen continuing to serve as presiding judge.

Conley said any procedural steps taken in the case against Cherry would be subject to potentially "heightened" review by appellate courts due to the possibility he might be sentenced to death.

The Capital-Journal was among five media organizations with representatives at Wednesday's hearing. Heinen had previously denied the newspaper's request to be allowed to have a still camera in court for that hearing.

Steven Ebberts, chief judge for Shawnee County District Court, met briefly with media representatives prior to Wednesday's hearing to make sure all their questions were answered.

What were the circumstances behind Zoey's death?

Tyree questioned Wednesday why Zoey's parents weren't also being charged with crimes regarding her death.

Zoey often roamed her neighborhood alone and unsupervised as she formerly lived with her parents and others at a house in the block of 2200 S.E. Market, neighbors told The Capital-Journal in October.

Holly Felix last September expelled from that house a group that included Zoey; Cherry; Ezequiel Felix-Guerrero, who was Zoey's father and had legal custody of her; and Zoey's half-sister, Katelenn Marie Cain. The group went to live in a campsite in the 2000 block of S.E. 28th.

That site was part of an area cordoned off as a crime scene by Topeka police after Zoey was brought Oct. 2 to the nearby Dillons gasoline pumps at 2010 S.E. 29th. She was suffering from injuries that proved fatal.

On Oct. 3, Topeka police said Zoey had been raped and killed a day earlier.

Cherry faces charges of one count each of capital murder, first-degree murder and rape. He was being held Wednesday in the Shawnee County Jail on a $2 million bond, jail records said.

Heinen on Wednesday scheduled the next hearing in the case against Cherry, a status conference, to take place at 9 a.m. March 8.

That will be three days after Cherry's 26th birthday, which Shawnee County Jail records say is March 5, and one day after Zoey would have turned 6, on March 7.

Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Judge bans cameras at pretrial hearings in Zoey Felix killing case