JACKSONVILLE, Fla — A cold-blooded killer or a lonely and desperate teen? The evidence in the Logan Mott sentencing hearing has at times suggested – both.
The prosecutor in the case has portrayed Mott as a depraved teenager, who shot and stabbed his own grandmother in November 2017, then joked about it on chat groups.
But over the past two days, the people closest to him have attempted to reshape the story. They say despite what he has done, he feels remorse and can be rehabilitated.
Friday was day three of the sentencing hearing for the teen accused of a brutal slaying. Mott confessed last month to shooting and stabbing his 53-year-old grandmother, Kristina French, before burying her in a shallow grave, wrapped in plastic and duct tape.
As part of his plea deal with prosecutors, Mott faces between 15 and 45 years in prison – a decision that rests solely with the judge.
Defense attorneys spent Friday afternoon attempting to humanize Mott and make a case for his rehabilitation.
The first witness they called was Barbara Deliphus, the school nurse at Fletcher Middle School. She first met Logan because of his Type 1 Diabetes, but they formed a close friendship, with Mott spending nearly every lunch hour with her.
Deliphus described Mott as usually bright, someone who hated to see human suffering. She said when his blood sugar levels were off, it would noticeably affect his demeanor. She said he came to visit her the week before the murder and seemed “happy, peaceful, joyful” with a “smile that could light the world up.” She said she believes Mott feels remorse for his crime.
“If Logan could go back to that second, it never would occur – no, no," Deliphus sais. "The Logan that I know doesn’t have the capacity to harm anyone. He’s about love and peace and giving. That’s the Logan that I know.”
A second key witness Friday was Logan Mott’s mother. Like his father, she testified about the couple’s acrimonious divorce and custody disputes, during which each accused the other of child abuse and neglect.
Carrie Mott testified that since his arrest, her son has graduated from high school and been accepted to a correspondence college in Colorado. She said she sends him books weekly including works by Plato, Socrates and Shakespeare. She said he’s read 330 books in all – with the hope that he can better himself and prepare for an eventual release.
And like other defense witnesses, she emphasized that despite what he did, Mott loved his grandmother Kristina French.
“He adored Kristina, he loved her so much and he respected her so much and he had so much fun with her,” she sais. “She was like a breath of fresh air when she came to Florida. She protected him from a lot of things going on in the household. She was his champion… and he adored her.”
The defense has a single witness remaining – a psychologist who evaluated Mott. It’s not yet clear when he will testify. The court has scheduled a brief status hearing in the case for Tuesday morning at 8 a.m.
