JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville-area teen accused of killing his grandmother, burying her in a shallow grave in his family backyard and driving her car to the Canadian border appeared Wednesday morning in Duval County court.
Logan Mott, 15, is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 53-year-old Kristina French, his grandmother.
Mott, whose hair has grown much longer, did not speak as he stood in shackles with his divorced parents and his attorney at Wednesday's procedural court appearance. All parties involved in the case received an update.
During the brief pretrial hearing, prosecutors and Mott’s public defender, Charlie Cofer, spoke at the bench during a sidebar.
A judge said that there will be another pretrial hearing in August. However, no trial date has been set.
When News4Jax asked why there seemed to be a delay, Cofer said that it's not unusual.
“It’s a complicated case," Cofer said. "You have to exercise due diligence for preparation, talking with witnesses and everything."
Cofer said he is doing his due diligence in investigating the case, as both sides continue to interview witnesses and review evidence.
While both of Mott's parents stood next to him during the hearing, they did not talk to each other outside the courtroom.
Last year, according to police, Mott repeatedly stabbed and shot French, then buried her in his yard before leaving town in her Dodge Dart.
French was looking after Mott while his father was on vacation. The two of them were reported missing Nov. 22 after Mott's father, Eric Mott, returned to find his home ransacked and empty.
Eric Mott reported that several guns, including his service weapons, were taken from the home.
Days later, police disclosed they had found a body, later identified as French, buried in the home's backyard. The younger Mott was captured that night by border agents near Buffalo, New York.
Prosecutors said three firearms -- including two service weapons that belong to Mott's father -- and a bloody knife were found inside French's car when her grandson was arrested.
Mott was initially charged only with stealing French's car. Then, a judge signed an arrest warrant Nov. 28 charging the teen with murder in his grandmother's death.
The teen is being held in isolation, housed in a 90-square-foot cell at the Duval County jail, where his father holds the rank of lieutenant.