'This goes against anything Brenda would want': Dad begs not to try daughter for mom's death
While Sydney Powell sat sobbing a few feet from him in a Summit County courtroom, her father pleaded for a resolution that would spare Sydney from going on trial for her mother’s stabbing death.
He begged prosecutors not to proceed with murder charges against his daughter for killing his wife, Brenda, during what the family believes was an episode of psychosis.
“I don’t know why we’re doing this,” Steve Powell said during the recent pretrial. “This isn’t what anyone wants here. I don’t know how she can handle it. I don’t know how I can handle it. I’m trying to keep my family together.”
Betsy Brown, Sydney’s maternal grandmother, echoed Steve’s views.
“All of this is opening things we hoped to put behind us,” said Brown, who has provided Sydney with a home since she was released on bond.
Despite the wishes of the Powell family, Summit County prosecutors have opted to try Sydney for murder for her mother Brenda Powell’s slaying.
Jury selection began Wednesday. Opening statements and testimony are set to start Thursday in Summit County Common Pleas Judge Kelly McLaughlin’s courtroom.
"We have the utmost sympathy for Brenda Powell’s surviving family members," Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh said in an email. "It’s unimaginable and tragic to lose a loved one to violence under any circumstances, much less when the violence is caused by another family member. In the interests of justice and the community, we believe the case is best resolved by presenting a fair and impartial jury with all the facts and letting them decide the outcome."
Three evaluations found Sydney, 23, to be not guilty by reason of insanity, determining she suffered a psychotic break when she stabbed her mother in March 2020. Another evaluation that was requested by prosecutors found that she was sane at the time of the incident.
Jeff Laybourne, who represents Sydney’s family, said the family hoped that prosecutors would accept the insanity findings. If that happened, a decision then would be required on the least restrictive environment to protect both Powell and the public.
He said the family's recommendation would have been that Sydney continue to live with her grandparents under the care of doctors.
“They would be requesting the judge to order she continue with the regiment she has been adhering to the last three years,” Laybourne said, noting that Sydney has never missed an appointment or violated her bond.
If the trial did go forward, the family, in a joint request with attorney Don Malarcik, who represents Sydney, asked that Avery, a facility dog owned by the prosecutor’s office, sit with Sydney during the trial to help her cope with the stress.
The prosecutor’s office refused this request.
Sydney Powell’s mental state spirals in months before stabbing, attorney says
Sydney’s attorney says her mother’s stabbing was the culmination of a spiraling mental state that started months before without her family’s knowledge.
Sydney graduated from St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron in 2018. She was an honor student with a 3.8 GPA and the captain of her high school soccer team.
She earned a partial academic scholarship to the University of Mount Union, where she began taking classes in the fall of 2019.
Her roommates say her mental state began deteriorating the next fall when she started sleeping 16 hours a day. She was placed on academic probation and then dismissed at the end of the fall semester.
More: Psychologist says Akron woman, 19, had psychotic episode prior to mother's fatal stabbing
Despite this, Sydney remained on campus, not telling her roommates or her parents about her dismissal. Her roommates say she was having blackouts where she wouldn’t remember what happened for 90 minutes at a time. They say she hadn’t been drinking or taking drugs prior to these episodes.
In February 2020, campus officials told Sydney she’d have to leave campus. She spent a week making her way back to Akron. Her phone records and credit card receipts show she stayed at various hotels.
On the morning of March 3, Sydney went to her family’s Scudder Drive home, much to the surprise of her parents.
Steve, her father, told Sydney she’d be OK and went to work. Brenda called Mount Union, trying to figure out what was happening.
Sydney recalls having hallucinations and going down to the basement, hoping to drown out the voices, Malarcik said.
“The next thing she remembers is waking up in the hospital,” Malarcik said.
Sydney Powell stabs her mother
Police say Sydney cut and stabbed her mother after the two of them got into an argument.
Brenda Powell, 50, was transported to Cleveland Clinic Akron General, where she later died.
Sydney, then 19, was taken to Summa Akron City Hospital for treatment for minor injuries.
Brenda worked as a child life specialist for 28 years at Akron Children's Hospital and at the hospital's Showers Family Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders. Her sudden death came as a shock to her patients and colleagues, as well as the Powell family's friends and neighbors.
Malarcik said friends and family members described Brenda and Sydney’s relationship as close and like they were best friends.
Sydney was arrested and charged with murder, felonious assault and tampering with evidence. She got teary during her arraignment.
Her family posted a $25,000 bond in April 2020. She has been under pretrial supervision that requires her to check in with the court once a week.
Family searches for answers after stabbing
Sydney underwent psychiatric treatment for two weeks after the stabbing.
Malarcik said doctors initially thought she might have brain damage. She had suffered concussions while playing soccer. They also wondered if she could have epilepsy, which might explain the blackouts and memory loss.
Doctors looked back at Sydney’s mental deterioration and identified signs of a psychotic break.
James Reardon, a Columbus psychologist, concluded that Sydney was not guilty by reason of insanity. He found that she was suffering from a severe mental illness and was unable to appreciate the wrongfulness of her conduct.
“I have rarely, if ever, seen a situation where an individual was in such an utterly compromised psychological state as Sydney Powell was at the time of these offenses,” Reardon concluded in his report.
Prosecutors requested a second opinion from Sylvia O’Bradovich of Summit Psychological Services in Akron. O’Bradovich found that Powell was sane at the time of her mother’s stabbing.
Malarcik received two other evaluations that reached the same conclusion as Reardon — Sydney Powell was not guilty by reason of insanity.
Multiple health care professionals have diagnosed her with schizophrenia and post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from the incident .
Sydney Powell’s family worries about trial’s impact
Sydney’s family members are concerned about the impact a trial could have on her mental state.
She was placed on medication when she was hospitalized and has been seeing a counselor, psychologist and psychiatrist, who have been monitoring her progress.
“Sydney has gotten better,” Steve Powell said during the recent pretrial. “I don’t want to see it go backwards.”
Malarcik and Laybourne have requested that prosecutors limit the number of crime scene photos and videos that are shown during the trial, especially because the cause of death isn’t in dispute.
Steve Powell said it will be difficult for both his daughter and him to see the photos and videos.
Betsy Brown, Sydney’s grandmother, said Sydney has been living with her at the family’s farm, where she helps with the horses and does chores like stacking hay.
Brown said it’s been difficult for Sydney even just meeting with her attorney. During the pretrial, Sydney repeatedly sobbed and bounced her legs.
“It’s very stressful and hard for her,” Brown said. “It’s just hard.”
Brown said Anthony Smartnick, one of Sydney’s doctors, thought having a facility dog in court with her during the trial might help.
Malarcik said if Sydney was a diabetic and needed to eat during the trial, no one would second-guess giving her that opportunity. He said the most drastic option would be Sydney voluntarily removing herself from the courtroom during the trial.
“If there’s a remedy short of that, this court has an obligation to explore it,” he said.
The Summit County’s Prosecutor’s Office has often requested Avery’s presence in court for traumatic matters. Courts in numerous jurisdictions have found that there is no prejudice in allowing therapeutic comfort dogs during court proceedings.
Prosecutors decline to provide dog or resolve case
Prosecutors, though, reiterated their refusal to allow Avery to be in court with Sydney during a meeting Friday with her father and grandmother.
Walsh said her office's two facility dogs are used in court to comfort and assist children or adults with disabilities who are crime victims or witnesses.
"The defendant in this case is not a crime victim and therefore we declined their request," Walsh said. "Our facility dogs were never intended to be used by the perpetrator."
Prosecutors also told the family they wouldn’t reduce or amend Sydney’s charges or agree to a finding of not guilty by reason of insanity.
Laybourne said the family is exploring other ways to help her cope during the trial. However, he said, they don’t have time at this point to explore another avenue for the use of a facility dog.
Laybourne said the Powell family is disappointed that a resolution couldn’t be reached.
“This goes against anything Brenda would want,” Steve Powell said.
“As parents, our job is to protect her,” he continued, referring to his daughter. “The goal is to get her better — not to go backward to prove a point.”
Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com, 330-996-3705 and on Twitter: @swarsmithabj.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Sydney Powell Akron Ohio: Woman on trial for stabbing mother to death
