Brandon
Watkins' Testimony
Kelsey's attorney brings to light that professionals
who were closely watching Kelsey after her return to Raye Dawn didn't see
anything alarming. Even he was able to see the animosity that was brewing
between the two families. So how could Kathie not be aware?
Huddleston: Mr. Watkins how do you know my client?
Watkins:
I was Kelsey’s attorney. I was appointed to be the guardian ad litem and
represent the interests of the child. The Briggs family had hired Mr.
Hodgens and Raye Dawn was represented by Greg Wilson, so I represented the
interests of the child.
Huddleston:
On June 15thh are you aware of the court date?
Watkins: Yes.
Huddleston: It was a full deprived hearing? Watkins: Yes, it took a little more than a day.
Huddleston: Lots of witnesses who were cross examined by lawyers and ultimately Judge Key ruled an unknown perpetrator? Watkins: Yes.
Huddleston: Did Judge Key appoint services in the home?
Watkins: Yes. CASA, CHBS, and DHS.
Huddleston:
Did Raye Dawn cooperate?
Watkins: Fully.
Huddleston: Are you aware of the animosity between the families?
Watkins: Yes, I did receive some animosity between the Smiths and the Briggs.
NOTE: Kathie Briggs testified that there was no animosity that she was aware of, yet this witness who was only vaguely familiar with the 2 families was aware of it! Is it possible that Kathie LIED during her testimony?
Huddleston:
What were the duties of all of those services?
Watkins: To monitor Kelsey’s progress and ensure Kelsey’s safety.
Huddleston: What was the level of supervision in this case?
Watkins: A lot.
Huddleston: How would you compare the level of supervision in this case to others?
Watkins: As much or more than others.
Huddleston: Ever had one with more?
Watkins: No.
Huddleston: Were court appearances required?
Watkins: Yes.
Huddleston: Everyone goes to court?
Watkins: yes.
Huddleston: July, August, September was there any reports that concerned you?
Watkins: No. They said she was doing great.
NOTE: NO CONCERNING REPORTS! From the time Kelsey was returned to her mother all the way through September. Yet Raye-Dawn “should have known”. What is it exactly that she should have known?
Huddleston: Do you make recommendations?
Watkins: In September based on the information I recommended at first the case be dismissed. She continued to thrive in my opinion.
Huddleston: Had you seen her?
Watkins: Yes.
Huddleston: You testified in that hearing that she seems to be extremely happy…mom has done everything she could, Kelsey was living well, and flourishing. The mother deserves to have the custody back with her, not DHS. And the DA’s office agreed?
Watkins: Yes. Both of us withdraw that recommendation because according to Ryan Luke the six months had not expired and Lance Briggs, the father was coming home and I wanted to meet him.
NOTE: THE DA’s office agreed! That means SMOTHERMON! He agreed at the September hearing there was NOTHING OF CONCERN!
Huddleston: So your decision to withdraw the recommendation had nothing to do with my client?
Watkins: No.
Huddleston: Was the DA’s office always involved?
Watkins:
Yes.
Cross Examination –
Prosecution
Smothermon: You mentioned Ryan Luke, what does that mean?
Watkins: After a child is returned there is a time period to ensure everything is smooth, not an abrupt cut off of services.
Smothermon: Did Kelsey live through that period?
Watkins: No.
Smothermon: Have you seen the pictures of Kelsey with the bruises?
Watkins: A couple.
Smothermon: Take a few minutes to look through this stack of pictures. Have you seen those before?
Watkins: No, this stack was certainly not made available to me. Based on the information before me, I made a recommendation.
NOTE: ALL of the photos were of the same injuries just taken over and over again. Look at Kelsey’s clothes; she is even wearing the same thing! The prosecution even included photos from the auto accident. To make the injuries look worse than usual bumps bruises, and scrapes.
Smothermon: This case has cost you a great deal of angst?
Watkins: Yes.
Smothermon: You came to my office and you said based upon information you had, at the time you made the right decision?
Watkins: Yes.
Smothermon: In January did you have the luxury of knowing two witnesses who say Raye Dawn beat her with a hairbrush?
Watkins: No.
NOTE: Donna Gilbreath one of the witnesses who made this accusation, she and her daughter (Ashley) were the OWNER’S of the BASH BOARD mentioned in the emails, per Shirica. Shirica said that she needed to remain nice to Ashley (Donna’s daughter) because she “knew too much information” – hummm… also convenient testimony, which NO ONE mentioned before when being interviewed by OSBI – it just happened to pop into their heads right before trial…amazing!
Smothermon: In September did you know Gayla Smith says Raye Dawn told her Michael Porter had Kelsey on the bed or on her stomach and eyes taped shut, did you know that?
Watkins: No.
Smothermon: How about when Raye Dawn was concerned that Porter told her Kelsey had fallen down the stairs?
NOTE: Smothermon says himself that Raye showed CONCERN!!
Watkins: No.
Smothermon: Would this information have been important in your representing the best interest of the child?
Watkins:
Yes.
Redirect – Huddleston
Huddleston - Those pictures, are they one incident or many?
Watkins: Don’t know.
Huddleston: The DA’s office had pictures, did they give them to you?
Watkins: No.
Huddleston: The January incident, you’re aware the police cleared her?
Watkins: Yes.
Huddleston: The DA’s office declined charges?
NOTE: BASED ON THE POLICE REPORT – the DA – RICHARD SMOTHERMON refused to file charges. If the “State” cleared Raye-Dawn of this and refused charges, how was it legal for him to even present ANY TESTIMONY regarding that incident? Wouldn’t that be DOUBLE JEOPARDY? (I guess since she was never actually charged, they could still bring it up- way to leave a loop hole Smothermon!!.)
Watkins: I did not know.
Huddleston: How about the tape incident, they didn’t tell you all of the children were laughing and giggling, would that have made a difference to you?
Watkins: I would have taken that into account.
Huddleston: No one saw Kelsey fall down the stairs, and no one saw any injuries, would that have mattered?
Watkins: I would have considered all of the information in front of me.
NOTE: This attorney for KELSEY would have taken into account the fact that the all of the children were laughing and playing during the CLEAR TAPE incident. Remember there were NO REPORTS OF CONCERN from June through Sept. This is the ENTIRE time that Raye-Dawn had Kelsey back into her full time care.
NO REPORTS – remind me again what she was supposed to “have
reasonably known”???
What Kelsey's Attorney
Had to Say
This is an excerpt from former Judge Craig Key's book, "A Deadly Game of Tug of War: The Kelsey Smith-Briggs Story." It's on page 112 and gives insight as to what really happened from the legal standpoint of Kelsey's return to her mom, Raye Dawn.
During
this time, newspaper ads, ran by Sheila Kirk, were distorting the facts
of Kelsey’s case. The attorney for Kelsey decided to set the record
straight, and sent the following letter on September 21, 2006, to the
editors of both the
“To the Editor,
As the attorney for Kelsey Smith-Briggs, I am writing this letter to set the record straight regarding several issues pertaining to Kelsey’s case. Unfortunately, her death has become a political football and it concerns me that some are pointing fingers without having full knowledge of the facts.
Whether
you support Judge Craig Key or his opponent, Sheila Kirk, I would
encourage everyone to base their decision on the truth rather than
emotion. To do otherwise would not serve the voters and citizens of this
county. The truth is Judge Key had the legal obligation to return Kelsey
to her mother. The Court, as well as myself, were advised that the
mother had completed the Individualized Service Plan created for her by
the Department of Human Services (DHS), and there were no additional
requirements of her. The
The truth is that Kelsey’s placement with her mother in June of last year was conditioned upon the stipulation and Court order that there would be significant monitoring by various child welfare agencies. That is exactly what happened. The truth is that during the four months that Kelsey was in the care of her mother, none of those responsible for overseeing Kelsey’s well-being ever reported to me or the Court that there were any problems with the care she was receiving. The truth is no one ever objected to or appealed Judge Key’s ruling to return Kelsey to her mother.
Based upon the evidence presented to the Court, and the monitoring and oversight requirement that was put in place on behalf of Kelsey, I do not believe that at that point in time any of the parties involved in the case feared for her safety, much less, her life.
No one
has a crystal ball or can foretell the future. Judges and lawyers rely
on the law and evidence. Everyone knows this. The more Kelsey’s tragic
situation is exploited and politicized, we will only move farther from
the truth of what really happened to Kelsey. The people of
This is what Kathie does. She throws out statements to get everyone mad at a person or organization and watches as they feed on the hatred. Brandon Watkins wasn't Kathie's attorney, he was KELSEY'S ATTORNEY.
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kjbriggs Kelsey's Grandma  Posts: 1,107 Group: Super Moderators Joined: Nov 2005 Status: Away Reputation: 
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donnasking Senior Member Posts: 229 Group: Registered Joined: Feb 2006 Status: Online Reputation:
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| 05-14-2006 10:34 AM |
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donnasking Senior Member Posts: 229 Group: Registered Joined: Feb 2006 Status: Online Reputation:
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sixesmum GTK's Grandma Posts: 138 Group: Registered Joined: Nov 2005 Status: Offline Reputation:
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| 06-06-2006 09:08 PM | |||
Kathie Briggs then posted Brandon Watkin's personal contact information on her site. I've taken out the address and phone number for privacy concerns.
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kjbriggs Kelsey's Grandma Posts: 1,107 Group: Super Moderators Joined: Nov 2005 Status: Away Reputation:
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| 06-08-2006 02:20 PM |
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mamascowboys New Member Posts: 1 Group: Registered Joined: Jun 2006 Status: Offline Reputation: 
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loretha New Member Posts: 13 Group: Registered Joined: Jan 2006 Status: Offline Reputation:
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kjbriggs Kelsey's Grandma Posts: 1,107 Group: Super Moderators Joined: Nov 2005 Status: Away Reputation:
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| 06-08-2006 02:15 PM |
