Mom charged in murder of 5-year-old drowned in toilet and buried under the house challenges death penalty eligibility

Ashley Rolland and Blu Rolland (Mug shot: St. Francis County Sheriff

Ashley Rolland and Blu Rolland (Mug shot: St. Francis County Sheriff’s Office; image of Blu: GoFundMe)

The defense for an Arkansas mother are trying to save her from the death penalty, saying she played no role in her live-in boyfriend drowning her 5-year-old son in a toilet.

Both Ashley Rolland and Nathan Bridges are charged with capital murder in the horrid death of young Blu Rolland, but the mom’s attorney argues that evidence shows that her client is not eligible for the death penalty under case law.

“In this case, the State filed a criminal information against Rolland stating that the codefendant, Nathan Bridges, was solely responsible for the homicidal act and that Rolland was merely present at the scene. The State declined to address how Rolland participated in the murder or how she was otherwise involved,” attorney Erin Lewis said in a filing dated Thursday. “Other discovery produced to Defendant by the State includes a statement from a witness present at the residence on the night of incident telling law enforcement that Rolland was screaming ‘Stop it!’ to the co-defendant. These facts, when viewed in conjunction with the case law cited to above, demonstrate that Rolland is not eligible for the death penalty.”

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