Takeaways from first day of Aiden Fucci's sentencing phase in Tristyn Bailey slaying

Day 1 of Aiden Fucci's sentencing phase in the death of 13-year-old classmate Tristyn Bailey at times felt more like a trial with testimony from sheriff's officers, crime analysts, a medical examiner and psychologist among others. But multiple photos, videos and interviews provided a broader picture of what happened on Mother's Day weekend 2021 in the St. Johns County neighborhood where the two lived.

Judge R. Lee Smith must decide how long to sentence 16-year-old Fucci from 40 years to life in prison. Due to being a juvenile, Fucci's first-degree guilty plea doesn't qualify for a possible death sentence. The sentencing hearings are expected to extend into the week with several more people called to testify.

Smith previously said he intends to decide on a sentence the same week.

"I'm not going to drag this out any longer than necessary," he said in February. "I don't want to go through a sentencing hearing and then say, ‘All right, now I'm going to take three more weeks."

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Fucci, 14 at the time, and Tristyn had been at a friend's home in their Dubrin Crossing neighborhood and were last seen walking together after 1 a.m. on May 9, 2021, the Sheriff's Office said. Bailey's body was found later that day in some nearby woods after a missing-person report was filed. The medical examiner's report said she had 114 stab wounds, 49 that were deemed defensive.

Here are six takeaways from Tuesday's testimony.

What did Aiden Fucci say Tristyn Bailey did before her death?

Deputy Robert Maloney of the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office was one of the first to interview Fucci when Tristyn was still missing. Fucci confirmed they were hanging out at a mutual friend's home until leaving together about 1 a.m. and he was home by about 3:30 a.m. But the deputy pointed out that some of Fucci's timeline didn't match up.

He said he went back to Fucci's home to talk with him again and asked if he would ride with him to show him the path that he and Tristyn took. His stepfather followed in a golf cart.

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Maloney said Fucci kept changing his story about when the two separated. He finally said they had a fight. Specifically, and Maloney apologized to the court for what he was about to say, he stated she grabbed his penis. He said he didn't like it and didn't want to cheat on his girlfriend, so he pushed her to the ground and she hit her head. He said he then walked off.

At that point Maloney said Fucci was now in custody. While waiting, he started crying and said, "I'm going to get arrested for bull----."

What drawing was found in Aiden Fucci's bedroom?

The second witness of the day was Marilyn Butts, a crime scene technician with the Sheriff's Office. She took dozens of photos both at the scene and Fucci's home.

She said Tristyn had a 20-dollar bill, vape pen, ring and cellphone at the time she was found that were photographed. At Fucci's home and bedroom, she provided photo documentation of his Nike shoes, white T-shirt and blue jeans all with possible blood on them.

On his desk was a journal with some drawings. One in particular was a sadistic-looking individual with a knife. Under cross-examination, Butts confirmed she didn't know for sure who drew them.

The next witness, St. Johns County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Kurt Hannon, noted that Fucci's best friend and girlfriend each described him as having a fascination with knives, carried one with him and showed them off. He even named them "Picker" and "Poker."

What about Aiden Fucci on Snapchat?

Hannon had Fucci in the back of his patrol car during the investigation and noticed he was using his cellphone to post to social media. The court was then shown two photos and two videos posted on Snapchat. Fucci was with his best friend talking and laughing about being in the back of an expletive cop car. Hannon said he was saying something like "Hey guys, anybody seen Tristyn Bailey lately?"

Fucci's cellphone also showed he had contact with Tristyn at 12:25 a.m. that May 9 and a Facetime between the two, Hannon said. The next activity on his phone was at 1:11 a.m., a call to his best friend that went unanswered. Then there was no activity until 9:27 a.m.

Under cross-examination, Hannon couldn't say if Fucci tried to delete anything from his phone.

Did Aiden Fucci's parents get to talk with him?

The fifth witness called to testify was detective Tyler Thompson of the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office. During his testimony, a video of Fucci and his parents recorded in a Sheriff's Office room by themselves was shown to the court.

They discussed how serious this situation is and that his Snapchat didn't help. He appeared very calm but wasn't forthcoming. "This is no joke, this is your whole life, your whole life," his mother said.

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She also asked if Tristyn really grabbed him, and he said yes. She also asked if he's scared, and he said not really, but a little. His father also said it wasn't smart to leave a 13-year-old girl out there alone at that time.

They also prepped him on how to answer questions. "Everything you say will affect you," his mother said.

What did the girlfriend say about Aiden Fucci?

Psychologist Gregory Prichard spent a long time rehashing what Fucci's girlfriend reported. She said the two of them enjoyed horror movies and that Fucci often talked about killing someone and would pretend to cut her throat. She also talked about seeing him being violent and beating up a boy over a vape pen. Another very detailed response was that he thought it would be satisfying to slit somebody’s throat and watch the blood drain out.

He even warned her to expect him to kill somebody this month, she said. It seems like he rehearsed it in his head, Prichard noted, calling it not an impetuous act, but planned. Fucci even made the comment to his girlfriend that if he does it, it will be planned.

She also said Fucci told her things were difficult at home and that he was the least liked out of all the family. His biological father also was physically abusive, he told her, referencing four specific times he choked or punched him. He also described what she believed was emotional abuse from his mother and thought he should report it.

Does the psychologist think Aiden Fucci can be rehabilitated?

Prichard said he's done more than 10,000 forensic evaluations, and a regular part of them have involved violent offenders and he has worked extensively with children.

Through all of the records and people interviewed, he said only two referred to Fucci as mature. Teachers also said he had academic difficulties, primarily in reading and math, and lacked motivation. One teacher went as far as to describe him as "a punk" who was always looking for a fight. But overall, their comments ranged from quiet and respectful to defiant.

As far as rehabilitation, he said would like to see more compassion and feeling bad about someone's actions once they are incarcerated. However, Fucci is well-documented to have had several negative issues while in jail. He was extorting commissary items from juveniles and making threats to harm or kill them.

So there’s a concern to him clinically that maybe Fucci can’t understand what he’s caused for so many people or express any sorrow. He showed callousness about his behavior in back of the police car and doesn’t seem to have the same kind of makeup that most people do, Prichard said.

He said he doesn't see him as a good candidate to get better.

"At this point, I would say his prognosis for rehabilitation is poor,” Prichard said.

Under cross-examination, Prichard confirmed for the defense team that he didn't personally evaluate Fucci. He responded no, he was not allowed to interview him, but he had access to a lot of information to draw conclusions.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Aiden Fucci hearing in Tristyn Bailey stabbing reveals new details