Man charged in Lexington toddler’s death may face death penalty. Judge hears hours of testimony
Psychology experts testified for hours Wednesday in a Fayette County courtroom as a judge listened to determine whether or not a man charged with murdering a 3-year-old should face the death penalty if he’s convicted.
Andrew Buster, 37, has been charged with murder and sodomy in connection to a December 2018 incident that left Lillyann Grace Reck dead. Buster was formally charged and arrested in January 2020, according to court records. He’s been held at the Fayette County Detention Center ever since.
Buster appeared in front of Fayette Circuit Judge Lucy Vanmeter Wednesday to hear testimony from psychology experts who could speak to Buster’s intellectual abilities, and ultimately determine Buster’s eligibility for the death penalty.
Two psychologists were among several witnesses called to discuss their findings of Buster’s IQ, and whether or not they thought he had intellectual disabilities. Buster wouldn’t be eligible for the death penalty if he’s determined to have intellectual disabilities.
The Supreme Court of the United States ruled in a previous case — Atkins v. Virginia — that sentencing someone with intellectual disabilities to death would be cruel and unusual punishment and would violate the Eighth Amendment.
Dr. Sara Boyd, a licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in intellectual and learning disabilities, testified for hours Wednesday and said Buster had a composite IQ of 80, according to a power point presented by the defense. But adjusted for the “Flynn Effect,” which accounts for IQ increases over time, his score should be 75, Boyd said in court.
But Dr. Jaclyn Williams of the Kentucky Correctional Psychiatric Center, who prosecutors presented as a witness Wednesday, gave Buster an IQ score of 86. The defense previously made a motion to exclude Williams’ testimony.
Boyd was critical of some of Williams’ IQ testing methods. Based on Williams’ tests, she found Buster had an IQ which was “borderline” to meeting the intellectual disability threshold.
“(Buster) did not meet the criteria for an intellectual disability with regards to his IQ score,” Williams testified. But she said he did display evidence of deficits in adaptive functioning which can contribute to the overall determination.
She said based on looking at Buster’s score profiles, she would not believe any psychological professional would come away thinking he had any intellectual disabilities.
For nearly nine hours, the attorneys went back and forth with both psychologists discussing the intricacies of how their IQ numbers were reached — largely based on the Flynn Effect calculation — and how their tests were conducted.
Vanmeter is expected to issue a ruling at a later date. Both prosecutors and the defense team will file briefings on their arguments made during Wednesday’s hearing.
How the investigation unfolded
Lillyann died in December 2018 after she was found unresponsive at an apartment, according to court records. Buster told investigators he was babysitting the child alone when the incident happened and said she choked on a cigarette cellophane while he was cleaning the apartment in another room.
Lillyann was taken to a hospital after she was found, but she died four days later. Doctors noticed she had injuries consistent with sexual assault, according to court documents. Her autopsy and other evidence later determined she was strangled or suffocated, court documents say.
3-year-old girl was a ‘hero’
Reck’s father, Joshua Reck, previously told the Herald-Leader Lillyann was a happy and cheerful child who liked to swing, go on car rides and dance. Because of a custody dispute, Joshua had not seen Lillyann for more than a year before her death.
“She liked to swing, she liked to go on car rides with me and bobble her little head and dance,” Joshua Reck said. “We didn’t listen to my music. We listened to ‘Wheels on the Bus,’ and I had education CDs for her that would make her smarter.”
Lillyann’s stepmother, Shannon Reck, said Lillyann “will be known as a hero.”
“Somewhere some family prayers have been answered. A part of her will live on,” Shannon Reck said.
Joshua said that Lillyann was an organ donor.
“She gave the ultimate sacrifice to save someone else,” he said.
