Megan Boswell Charged With Additional Murder Count in Killing of 15-Month-Old Daughter, Evelyn

Evelyn Boswell
Baby Evelyn Boswell had been hit with something blunt and then buried alive, upside down, in a trash bag on her family's farm, authorities said.Facebook

Megan Boswell faces a new charge of premeditated murder in the killing of her toddler daughter, Evelyn. The 15-month-old went missing in 2020, and her mother gave false information to investigators for weeks, authorities said.

Tennessee mother Megan Boswell has pleaded not guilty to a new murder charge in the killing of her 15-month-old daughter, Evelyn, whose disappearance sparked international headlines.

Boswell, now 23, appeared in Sullivan County court Thursday to face a new count of premeditated first-degree murder. She is charged with 20 felonies including murder, aggravated child abuse, aggravated child neglect, giving false reports to law enforcement and failing to report a death, according to prosecutors.

"All I can tell you is it was based on additional evidence that we had that we obtained after the initial presentment — so we decided we would add additional charge of first-degree murder, premeditated," Sullivan County District Attorney General Barry Staubus said in court.

Boswell's arraignment on the new charge occurred during a hearing requested by her attorney, who is seeking to move her trial out of Sullivan County because of intense publicity surrounding the case

A change of venue motion filed by defense attorney Gene Scott was rescheduled for Aug. 15.

"There shouldn't be a rush to judgment in this case – no evidence has been presented yet — yet I have people text me, talk to me, about their thoughts that she is guilty," Scott said. 

"What we've asked is to move it out of Sullivan County," he continued. "Obviously I think this case has been picked up in most of the major news markets in Tennessee, but, it probably has not been examined as heavily, say, in the Nashville market or the Memphis market."

Prosecutors have said they think a suitable jury could be found in Sullivan County.

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