Attorneys fight to block broadcast, recording of Leilani Simon murder trial

The mother of the young woman charged with murdering her 20-month-old son last October turned over a large stack of papers and books Monday to the Chatham County judge overseeing the case.Billie Jo Howell, mother of Leilani Simon, appeared before Judge Tammy Stokes and handed over eight notebooks belonging to Simon after she was issued a subpoena last month.Defense attorneys filed a motion to quash the subpoena saying it would violate Leilani Simon's Fourth Amendment rights to unreasonable search and seizure.The defense said it would call Howell to testify during that hearing which has not been scheduled.TRENDING STORIESMurdaugh Murder Trial: Live UpdatesSmith State Prison officer speaks out after warden arrested on RICO chargesrdaugh Timeline of Evidence: This is what happened the night Paul and Maggie were murderedMeanwhile Department of Family and Children Services records related to the family are now also in the custody of the court.Judge Stokes will conduct an in camera inspection, meaning she will review those records in private, and said she would later provide both sides access to them.During Monday's hearing, both the defense and state argued against the recording, broadcasting, photographing and live streaming of any future proceedings in this case.Prosecutor Timothy Dean cited privacy interests for Quinton's surviving siblings while defense attorney Joseph Vigneri expressed the need for an impartial jury.Judge Stokes said that she will take up the issue of cameras for each future hearing.Leilani Simon is accused of killing Quinton and dumping his body in a dumpster before reporting him missing on the of Oct. 5, 2022.After weeks of searching, law enforcement discovered his remains in a Chatham County landfill.Leilani Simon faces 19 counts including malice murder, felony murder, concealing a death and making false statements.