JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville man accused of raping his 16-year-old niece and killing her and her unborn child will be back in court Thursday.
A judge is expected to decide at some point if past accusations against Jonathan Quiles and his criminal history can be referenced in his trial for the murder of Iyana Sawyer.
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Quiles was in court two weeks ago for the first part of what’s known as a Williams Rule hearing to determine if those previous accusations and crimes should be considered in the upcoming trial on unrelated charges.
Normally during trials, prosecutors aren’t allowed to bring up past crimes or convictions. This evidence can’t be used to argue a “propensity” for a certain crime because the defendant has been accused or convicted of something similar in the past.
Prosecutors are arguing to be allowed to bring up Quiles’ criminal history, because they believe testimony from a potential second minor victim could help in their murder case against him.
According to a 2019 arrest report, a girl, who is not named in the report, was spending the night at Quiles’ home to babysit his 3-year-old daughter in December 2017, and he woke her up in the middle of the night and sexually battered her.
During the hearing two weeks ago, prosecutors argued that testimony from the girl could help in the pursuit of justice for Iyana Sawyer and her unborn child.
That unknown girl told her mother about what happened one year later, according to the report -- around the same time Sawyer, the niece Quiles is accused of killing, disappeared.
The last time Sawyer was seen was on Dec. 19, 2018. She had traveled to her uncle’s job at a salvage yard on North Main Street after school, according to court records.
Police believe the 16-year-old was shot and killed and placed into a dumpster that was taken to the Otis Road Landfill. Investigators looked through 5,500 tons of trash, but her body was never found.
Sawyer was 5 months pregnant when her family reported her missing that December.
Quiles has been in jail for the last four years.
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Quiles’ trial is planned for September.