Woman sentenced in young son’s 1986 disappearance, presumed death

A pistillate charged successful transportation with her young son’s disappearance and presumed decease much than 35 years agone volition service little than a twelvemonth successful prison.

District Judge Tierra Jones sentenced 63-year-old Amy Fleming connected Friday to 2 years down bars aft she pleaded blameworthy successful August to voluntary manslaughter. But Fleming’s defence attorney, Nicholas Wooldridge, said that owed to the clip Fleming already has spent successful jail, she volition service astir 8 months successful prison.

When Fleming was arrested successful February 2019 successful Palm Beach, Florida, she was initially charged with murder aft a improvement prompted detectives to reopen the acold case.

She had been suspected for years successful the disappearance of her son, 3-year-old Francillon Pierre, who was past seen Aug. 2, 1986, astatine the then-Broad Acres swap conscionable successful North Las Vegas.

Fleming entered what is known arsenic an Alford plea, Wooldridge said, which means she admitted lone that prosecutors had capable grounds to beryllium her guilt.

“She has maintained her innocence throughout,” the lawyer said.

He said the lawsuit would person been hard to instrumentality to trial, due to the fact that galore of the witnesses who could person been called successful Fleming’s favour are present dead.

While Nevada instrumentality present allows judges to condemnation idiosyncratic to a scope of years, the instrumentality erstwhile Francillon went missing called for a two-year condemnation for voluntary manslaughter.

Prosecutor Marc DiGiacomo said connected Friday that helium does not judge that the authorities “got the afloat measurement of justice,” and that helium would person liked to person recovered Francillon.

“At the precise least, past is going to bespeak that his decease was the work of this peculiar defendant,” DiGiacomo said.

Fleming, who appeared successful tribunal connected Friday adjacent to her lawyer, declined to springiness a statement, and nary 1 gave a unfortunate interaction statement.

During the archetypal investigation, Fleming and her then-fiance, Lee Luster, claimed that Francillon had slipped distant from them portion they shopped for a bicycle astatine the swap meet. Witnesses astatine the conscionable said they had not seen Francillon, and neighbors said they had not seen the lad permission the location successful weeks, constabulary said.

Both Fleming and Luster served clip successful jailhouse for lying during constabulary interviews. Police said the 2 seldom discussed Francillon’s disappearance successful letters they wrote to each other.

It remains unclear however Francillon died.

Contact Katelyn Newberg astatine knewberg@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg connected Twitter.