New updates in Javeayah Harris killing

[0:34] This is a News 1226 special report as the search continues for Javaya Harris. [0:40] All right. Thank you guys for joining us here on WRDW Plus as we are continuing our coverage of Javaya Harris and some of the bond hearings that her parents were a part of. [0:57] If you're just now joining us or if you're just catching up, we know that Javaya's mother actually was denied bond this morning in connection to the filing a false police report. [1:05] Her father was also supposed to be at that bond hearing this morning at 10 o'clock, but that did not happen. [1:12] They said he was not ready. We got an updated time from the sheriff's office for 1230. [1:17] They were trying to find a judge to get in here because in South Carolina, you have to have a specific judge to handle cases specifically for homicide by child abuse charges. [1:26] So they have found that judge. We know that our crews have been escorted back at this time. [1:30] Of course, we're a little delayed from from the 1230 time frame. [1:34] So our crews are back in that courtroom right now. [1:37] We will get live updates as soon as we have them. [1:40] We will we'll share those when we learn what Javaya's father's fate is with this bond hearing. [1:46] So I don't know if they're going to bring the mother back in to address the homicide by child abuse charge, [1:52] because, again, this morning the judge said that he did not have the authority to set bond for that charge. [1:57] But because the filing a false police report charge was connected to the homicide by child abuse charge, [2:02] that's why he denied bond and held her. [2:05] So we're not sure if she if she is going to show back up to the courtroom with the father this afternoon. [2:10] But again, we do have a crew there who just got escorted back. [2:14] So we'll bring you live updates as soon as we have them related to this bond hearing. [2:18] But I know a lot of people have been asking if Javaya's body has been found at this time. [2:24] We do not have confirmation of that. [2:27] We know that search crews are still out there looking. [2:29] That's the information we were last given. [2:31] We know that they are in the area of Great Falls, South Carolina, which is in Chester County. [2:36] And that's where crews were looking. [2:37] We know that SLED had their helicopter up yesterday, took off from Columbia at around noontime, [2:43] did a couple circles in the Great Falls area around water and bodies of water and along the shoreline, too, of a of a river or creek over there. [2:51] So that was the last information we had. [2:55] We know that there was a mobile command center from from the Fairfield County Sheriff's Office, as well as DNR and deputies out there searching. [3:02] And it was closed to the public as well. [3:04] So, again, if you're just now joining us, Javaya's father is now in the courtroom learning his fate with the bond hearing. [3:11] So we'll see what the judge has to say related to that. [3:13] They had to get a special judge, a circuit court judge to address this homicide by child abuse charge, because under state law, when there's an offender who is facing a charge that has to do with life in prison or a very serious crime like this, [3:30] then you have to have a specific judge to address that. [3:33] And the judge this morning didn't have the authority to address that. [3:36] Plus, the father said he was not ready for his bond hearing. [3:39] So I think while we're waiting for information on that bond hearing to catch everyone up to speed, let's play. [3:47] Can we play the video from the mother's bond hearing this morning? [3:53] OK, we'll pull it up here in a second. [4:10] Yeah, we'll go ahead and we have that the mother's bond hearing from this morning. [4:14] We'll play that. [4:15] My name is Judge Thornton. [4:52] Today's date is July 5th, 2026. [4:56] And you were in bond court. [4:57] When bond is set and if you can meet the requirements, you will be released from this facility. [5:04] However, being released on bond will have no effect on your charges or your day in court. [5:12] Your release may necessitate contacting the bonding company for assistance. [5:16] There is a list of local bonding company names and phone numbers in the back to help. [5:22] You have the right to a jury trial. [5:23] You also have the right and an obligation to attend all court proceedings. [5:27] If you choose not to attend, you may be tried in your absence, a bench warrant may be issued for your arrest, and you could face additional charges. [5:38] If your charges are dismissed or you are found on guilty, you also have the right to petition the court to have those charges expunged, which means that they will come off of your criminal history. [5:48] You have the right to represent yourself, or you can get your own attorney. [5:53] If you cannot afford to hire an attorney, the court may appoint an attorney to represent you. [5:58] We will start the qualification process today, but it is up to you to follow up. [6:04] For charges that will be heard in General Sessions Court, you contact the public defender's office to complete the application process. [6:13] Court dates, times, and locations will be included in the paperwork that I'm about to give you, so don't try to keep up with anything in your head. [6:19] For charges that will be heard in General Sessions Court, you have the right to a preliminary hearing. [6:24] A preliminary hearing does not determine if you are guilty or not guilty. [6:28] It simply confirms if probable cause exists to move forward to trial with the charges that you face. [6:34] If you want a preliminary hearing, you need to submit the form I will give you within 10 days, and that 10 days starts today. [6:42] You will get a copy of everything that you sign. [6:44] I understand that by signing, know that it is not an admission of guilt or anything other than a receipt of the documents as part of this bond hearing process. [6:54] Please follow the deputy's guidance and sign an initial everywhere that it is highlighted in yellow. [6:59] Do you understand that? [7:00] Yes, sir. [7:04] Ms. Herring, you've been charged with homicide by child abuse. [7:09] Do you understand that charge? [7:10] Yes, sir. [7:10] Do you understand that if convicted, it carries up 20 years to life in prison? [7:16] Yes. [7:17] Do you understand that? [7:17] You've also been charged with filing a false police report of a felony violation. [7:24] Do you understand that? [7:25] Yes, sir. [7:25] It carries up to five years in prison for a $5,000 fine. [7:29] Do you understand that? [7:30] Yes, sir. [7:31] Okay. [7:31] Do you want to see if you qualify for a court-appointed attorney, or are you going to retain the services of your own legal counsel? [7:45] I can get public assistance. [7:50] Okay. [7:52] So answer a couple of questions for me. [7:54] Are you employed? [7:56] Yes, sir. [7:56] And where do you work? [8:03] Transcom. [8:05] Transcom? [8:05] Yes, sir. [8:06] Do you get paid weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly? [8:09] Bi-weekly. [8:12] On average, what do you typically bring home every two weeks? [8:16] $1,300. [8:17] Do you also live in the household with you? [8:31] Yes, sir. [8:33] The father. [8:33] So just one? [8:35] Yes, sir. [8:36] Does he do anything to contribute to the financial status of the home? [8:42] He works at DHL. [8:43] All right, this time, you make too much money to qualify for a court-appointed attorney, so you're going to need to retain the services of legal counsel on your own. [9:02] You also have a first court appearance set up for September 18th of this year at 9 a.m. in the main courtroom at the Aiken County Judicial Center, 109 Park Avenue Southeast in Aiken. [9:18] If you're able to bond out, then you'll need to be there for this first appearance. [9:26] If you have not bonded out on these charges, the sheriff's office will transport you to the courtroom. [9:36] Does Victim Services have anything they'd like to add to the record this morning? [9:48] Yes, we ask that she complies with DSS requirements. [9:58] Very good. [9:59] Is there anyone from law enforcement that is here to put anything on the record? [10:06] Very well. [10:10] All right. [10:11] Ms. Herring, with regards to the homicide by child abuse, it carries 20 years to life if convicted. [10:20] Based on the severity of the charge, the penalty that it carries, I do not have the authority to set bond. [10:29] All right, so this was the bond hearing earlier this morning for Mashilah Herring, who is the mother of Javaya Harris. [10:35] She was denied bond for filing that false police report, and you heard the judge talk about this a little bit. [10:41] He said he did not have the authority to set bond related to the homicide by child abuse charge. [10:46] So we did just get a live update from Sydney Hood, our reporter there in the courtroom now, who said that Harris, the father, just walked into the courtroom now. [10:57] So this bond hearing for the father is actively happening. [11:00] So any updates that she provides, I will bring them live to you right here as we get them. [11:05] So stick with us as we work to get this information out to you guys. [11:10] They had to go get a special judge, a circuit court judge, to deal with this because violent crimes require in South Carolina that a specific judge, a circuit court judge, needs to set bond. [11:24] And homicide by child abuse is one of those charges. [11:26] They are the ones who have the bond setting authority exclusively for charges like this. [11:33] But again, you're seeing this footage from earlier this morning for the mother. [11:37] This was her bond hearing. [11:38] It's unclear if she's going to show back up to bond court this morning to address the homicide by child abuse charge. [11:43] But she will have that arraignment, that first appearance on September 18th at 9 a.m. [11:49] That's when she will enter into a plea of guilty or not guilty at that time. [11:52] So a little more than a month away before we learn what her plea will end up being. [11:56] She was in court today by herself. [11:58] No family, no attorney there. [12:01] You heard the judge say she does not qualify for a public defender. [12:04] So she will have to go and retain counsel on her own because she didn't qualify again for public defender status. [12:11] And you heard that she will have to be she will adhere to DSS requirements. [12:17] So Department of Social Services with the state is involved at this time. [12:20] I know that a lot of people have asked that asked about the baby that she gave birth to. [12:25] When she called 911 and said Javaya was missing, we know that she did have a child in the hospital. [12:30] And that child is with other family at this time. [12:34] So that's what we know about the situation. [12:37] Javaya's body has still not been recovered. [12:39] As far as we know, that's the last information we have from the sheriff's office. [12:43] And we know that they were searching up in Great Falls, South Carolina. [12:46] That's in Chester County. [12:48] Your Meredith Anderson was up there yesterday and got plenty of photos and videos. [12:52] And Javaya's family actually showed up to the scene and some of them telling us that they learned about most of this or that she was deceased because of Facebook posts, which is heartbreaking to hear. [13:02] So that's the newest update today in the search. [13:06] For those of you joining us outside the area, this is in Aiken County, South Carolina, right next to Augusta, Georgia. [13:12] And we are waiting for more information related to the bond hearing for the father of Javaya Harris. [13:24] Javaya Harris, he is in court right now. [13:27] And he walked in about five minutes ago. [13:30] So that is going on right now. [13:31] We should know shortly and get some updates here in the next minute or so. [13:36] We do have a reporter in that courtroom. [13:37] So I'm looking at some of y'all's questions, too, and I'll try to answer them the best we can. [13:46] And this is some of the video on your screen you can see before that picture of the Great Falls area where they were doing that search. [13:54] We were able to find this out. [13:56] Meredith looked it up yesterday on a website called FlightAware. [14:00] It's a public website that you can actually track tail numbers. [14:03] And there's the flight path from SLED's helicopter that took off yesterday at around noon from Columbia. [14:09] You can actually track this yourself. [14:10] It's a public record, a public website, if you know the tail number. [14:13] So we were able to look that up online and saw that SLED's helicopter went up there and searched for about 20 minutes or so. [14:20] And you can see their path and how they were circling around the pond and the water that was in that area and some of the banks of it, too. [14:30] So we didn't know why they were up there. [14:33] They could have been up there for a variety of reasons. [14:37] And Meredith ended up running into family up there. [14:41] And we ended up getting that independently confirmed. [14:46] Did the dad have a hearing yet? [14:49] That is actively going on. [14:55] If you guys are unfamiliar with the story, you can actually go to WRDW.com. [15:00] It's our top story on our website to get up to speed on everything. [15:04] It's a lot to rehash. [15:06] And I want to make sure that we're up to date with this bond hearing, too. [15:14] This is the mother, not the stepmother. [15:16] She is the mother. [15:19] And people are asking how they knew to search up in the Great Falls area. [15:22] We're still working to find out what information led them there. [15:27] We don't know if they got a tip through the tip line or video or photo submissions through their website that they set up, too. [15:33] So we're not clear on what evidence or what tip they got to lead them to Great Falls. [15:39] It's about two hours from Augusta, past Columbia. [15:42] You can see it there on the map. [15:43] The hearing that you just saw for the mother was not live. [15:50] We fed that back and then re-aired it. [15:52] So that wasn't live. [15:53] We're not allowed to live stream some of these hearings. [15:55] So we'll have to wait. [15:57] We'll have to wait until it's over. [15:59] Okay, here we go. [16:00] I've got some information. [16:02] Okay, for bond court with the dad, I'm going to read over this real quick to make sure I have it straight. [16:33] Okay. [16:33] So we can confirm that bond has been denied for Javiah Harris's father now. [16:39] So bond denied for both parents in this case. [16:42] I'll read to you some notes that we got from our reporter here in the courtroom, but this is breaking. [16:47] The father has been denied bond. [16:49] The mother, we knew earlier this morning, was also denied bond. [16:53] So same judge as earlier presiding over this case. [16:56] So he was not a circuit court judge. [16:58] He couldn't address this situation with the homicide by child abuse. [17:03] So, again, it carries 20 years to life in prison. [17:07] From the notes, they said when the judge asked the father if he wanted to see if he qualified for a court-appointed attorney, [17:15] he struggled to answer and then asked the judge to repeat the question. [17:19] So the judge said, let's see if you qualify for an attorney. [17:22] He said he was employed by DHL Ridgestone, gets paid weekly, doesn't know how much, [17:29] and said when asked if there were any others in the household, he said, [17:32] my girlfriend, and then in a softer tone, said my child. [17:37] He's not qualified for a court-appointed attorney, so he will have to find counsel on his own. [17:44] The judge said a circuit court judge will handle bond, [17:46] but the judge said today that bond is being denied and being transferred to a circuit court judge. [17:52] So there's more to all of this. [17:55] They will be back in court. [17:56] It's unknown when that will be, so we're going to have to figure that out. [18:01] Again, we know that Mishilah Herring's first appearance will be on September 18th at 9 a.m., [18:09] where she'll enter into a plea. [18:12] So we're going to work on getting some of that video back. [18:15] They've got to get out of the courtroom and get some more information. [18:19] Then they'll feed that back to us, and then we will get that on this stream as soon as we can, [18:24] so you guys can get your first look and first video look at him and hear what he had to say [18:30] and hear what the judge had to say in court as well. [18:32] I'm just reading some updates. [19:55] Again, the father's bond was just denied. [19:59] Let me see. [19:59] There's more information here. [20:01] I'm trying to catch up. [20:01] I'm sorry, guys. [20:06] Okay, so the circuit court will hear bond with... [20:10] Okay, here we've got some video for you guys. [20:12] Yeah, this just happened, so we're feeding this back here as quickly as we can. [20:25] I mean, this just happened, so you guys are getting your first look with me. [20:28] I'm also seeing this for the first time with you guys. [20:31] Mr. Harris, today is Sunday, July 5, 2026. [20:40] My name is Judge Thornton. [20:43] You're in bond court. [20:46] When bond is set, and if you can meet the requirements of the bond, [20:51] you will be released from this facility. [20:53] However, being released on bond will have no effect on your charges or your day in court. [21:00] You've been charged with homicide by child abuse, [21:03] which carries a prison sentence, if convicted, of 20 years to life. [21:12] You understand that? [21:13] Yes. [21:13] You have the right to a jury trial. [21:17] You also have the right and obligation to attend all court proceedings. [21:21] You have the right to represent yourself and get your own attorney. [21:26] If you cannot afford to hire an attorney, the court may appoint an attorney to represent you. [21:32] We will start that qualification process today, but it is up to you to follow up. [21:38] Your case is going to be heard in General Sessions Court, so after today's preliminary application, [21:52] you will be given an opportunity to meet with the public defender's office to confirm if that's the direction you want to go. [22:01] Court dates, times, and locations of all future court dates and proceedings will be included in the paperwork that I'm going to give you today. [22:10] Charges that will be heard in General Sessions Court, you also have a right to a preliminary hearing. [22:18] A preliminary hearing does not determine if you are guilty or not guilty. [22:22] It simply confirms that there's probable cause sufficient to move forward to trial with the charges that you face. [22:31] Understanding all this and the charges and the penalties that you face, [22:37] do you want to see if you qualify for a court-appointed attorney, [22:41] or do you plan on contesting these charges by retaining your own legal counsel? [22:47] Question. [23:19] Let's just see if you qualify. [23:21] So a court-appointed attorney. [23:25] Are you employed anywhere? [23:28] Where do you work? [23:29] DHL, registered. [23:31] Say that again for me. [23:34] DHL, registered. [23:35] Do you get paid weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly? [23:48] Weekly. [23:49] And what do you, on average, bring home every week? [23:53] It's my first check. [23:55] I haven't seen it yet. [23:57] So you don't know. [24:04] Besides you, how many of us live in the household with you? [24:07] Does she contribute to the financial status of the house as well? [24:19] We also have a first initial court appearance date set up for September 18th of this year, [24:48] 9 a.m. in the main courtroom at the Aiken County Judicial Center, [24:52] 109 Park Avenue, southeast in Aiken. [24:55] Once again, don't try to keep up with all these numbers and dates in your head. [24:59] It'll be a part of the paperwork that I'll give you in just a few minutes. [25:02] Remember that you also have a right to request a preliminary hearing. [25:12] And paperwork in it as well. [25:17] You've got 10 days to submit that paperwork, and that 10 days starts today. [25:24] Now, with regards to the charge, you're here to have a bond set, [25:33] but this court does not have the authority or the jurisdiction to set a bond [25:37] for a sentence of a crime that could get you life and present. [25:42] So, today's bond is being denied, and it's also being transferred to the circuit court, [25:53] where a circuit court judge will hear this case in the next 30 days, [26:01] and a circuit court judge will set the bond for the charge. [26:08] But for now, there is no bond. [26:11] I do not qualify you at this point for a court-appointed attorney. [26:21] So, it would be my advice to you to seek legal counsel to represent you as you move forward. [26:30] Best of luck to you. [26:33] We're adjourned. [26:35] With Victim Services, we are asking that he complies with DSS requirements. [26:39] Yes. [26:40] Thank you, Victim Services. [26:41] I appreciate that. [26:42] He complies with DSS's requirements. [26:46] All right. [26:46] That's a condition of the bond. [26:52] Very good. [26:52] Well, there you have it. [26:59] There's the bond hearing for Jamari A. Harris, who is the father of four-year-old Javaya Harris, [27:05] who is still missing tonight, but is believed to be deceased at this time. [27:09] You heard the judge say, good luck to you, as he seeks legal counsel or tries to find legal counsel [27:15] and proceeds with his court hearings as well. [27:18] So, if you guys are just catching up here, the mother, Mashilah Herring, was charged, [27:25] arrested and charged, just like the father was, and had her bond hearing earlier this morning. [27:29] That was denied, but this judge does not have the authority. [27:32] You heard him say it does not have the authority to set bond for a homicide by child abuse case [27:39] because it's a charge that could lead to life in prison or death. [27:45] So, this judge does not have the authority to set a bond for a charge like that in South Carolina. [27:49] So, it has to go to a circuit court judge, and that will be held in the next 30 days or so [27:54] where that judge will hear this case and then set bond. [27:58] So, they are essentially held until that hearing happens where they will go before another circuit court judge [28:04] and they will hear their case and then bond will be set at that time as well. [28:09] So, that is the latest update with this case. [28:14] We still do not have any update on the search for Javaya Harris. [28:18] All we know is that yesterday, DNR, law enforcement, and SLED's helicopter were up in Great Falls, South Carolina, [28:26] which is Chester County in the upstate, past Columbia, about two hours from Augusta. [28:31] They were up there searching. [28:33] At the time, we didn't know why they were searching, but we did end up hearing from some of Javaya's family members [28:40] who showed up to the scene there, some of them telling us they heard about some of this news over Facebook, [28:46] which is just absolutely heartbreaking, and we heard from the sheriff yesterday that this is one of the hardest things [28:51] that he's ever had to announce in his 30-plus years of law enforcement. [28:55] And you can find our full coverage on our website, wrdw.com, too. [28:58] We are in Augusta, Georgia. [29:01] We cover a lot of South Carolina and Georgia, if you guys are unfamiliar with where we are. [29:08] Great Falls is past Columbia from where we are, is what I mean. [29:11] Are we planning to have Sydney live at all? [29:26] Do we know, or are we not going to do that? [29:29] Okay, okay, okay, that's fine. [29:43] I know some of you guys are wanting the backstory to this case. [29:45] I can do a little roundup. [29:47] I'll be on here for a little bit. [29:49] We've been live a lot today, so you guys can find a lot of our coverage, our previous coverage online, too. [29:54] But this all started on Tuesday this week, where initially there was a report of a missing four-year-old at around 8.15, 8.45. [30:07] And a lot of us got the alerts at around 12.30 a.m., so early in the morning. [30:13] A lot of us got these government alerts on our phones saying that they were looking for a missing four-year-old in Aiken, South Carolina. [30:19] And that's when we found out that there was a large law enforcement presence, and they were on the ground searching for this little girl. [30:25] SLED was involved, and then quickly after that, the FBI out of Columbia got involved, and that's how we knew this was pretty serious. [30:33] Every missing person's search in case is serious, and it is important, but we knew that this one had an extra level to it when they got involved. [30:40] So that's really what happened here. [30:43] This went from a missing person's search to a recovery now. [30:45] But throughout the week, we had large search parties. [30:49] I mean, over 200 personnel on the ground looking for Javaya Harris. [30:54] Neighbors were interviewed by investigators and FBI agents in the neighborhood, and no one knew where this little girl was. [31:02] It was believed that she just wandered off from her front yard. [31:05] The story was that the mother called 911 after Javaya was in the front yard playing with chickens by a chicken coop and then wandered off. [31:13] She called 911. [31:14] We now know that that is not true and not the case because she is charged with filing a false police report. [31:20] And Javaya had actually been missing for a month before that 911 call went through, and she was believed to be dead for at least a month at this time. [31:29] So there were a lot of search parties. [31:31] There were blockades going on throughout the week. [31:33] They were checking cars coming in and out of an area where she was last seen and where she was reported missing, too. [31:41] So no car went in or out without being checked. [31:44] We had reporters on the ground for the last four days trying to get any information as to where Javaya might be. [31:51] And we were told that it was a missing person search, that they were checking some outside areas, but they didn't know. [31:57] But it was primarily contained to an area in Aiken County. [32:01] And as we went into Friday and at the end of Friday, we really were trying to ask the question, how long are these searches going to go on? [32:10] Are things going to be scaled back? [32:13] Is there a plan for a press conference heading into the weekend so we can get some more information? [32:16] And we were told that resources were being evaluated and being scaled back. [32:20] Much of what the public saw was going to be, or a lot of the work was going to be behind the scenes. [32:26] It was not going to be public facing. [32:28] So we didn't expect a press conference yesterday from the sheriff. [32:32] And when we got that notification, we knew it probably wasn't something good. [32:36] And, of course, we learned that Javaya had been deceased and had been gone for at least a month. [32:41] And then the parents were also charged and arrested, as you look at their mug shots here on your screen. [32:45] So that's a little bit of the back story. [32:47] And for those of you who don't know, too, I actually interviewed on the phone the father on Thursday. [32:54] So a couple days into the search, I interviewed with the father over the phone. [32:58] And we have that interview. [33:00] So his story was essentially that he didn't know what had happened to her, didn't have any idea what was going on, and ran some errands. [33:07] So we'll actually play that interview I did with him earlier this week on Thursday. [33:10] I was talking about five, five-ish, and my daughter was outside playing. [33:31] My girl was out there watching her. [33:33] She was in and out of the house, I'd say that. [33:36] And I was going to get up and wash her clothes. [33:41] Jack, what else can I say? [33:43] And I left the house around, what, six, like, late, late, maybe, like, early seven, seven, it was probably around, like, six. [33:54] And I got back to the house maybe around 7.15 because my girl and my daughter said they wanted some candy. [34:01] Like, she wanted some suckers and she wanted some cookies. [34:03] And I had went to, like, three stores maybe in between those times, go get gas, blacker mouths, and I had only got some drinks, like, some little mad dolls and stuff like that. [34:14] And when I left and I went back to dry the clothes because I was washing them, I was sitting there for a little minute, then I ended up going to another store. [34:24] Like, these three stores, you know what I'm saying, like, I sold the big stores already, but I went to a store last. [34:30] And then I was back at the, yeah, I was back at the washing machine that was right beside the Circle K. [34:34] And then, like, when I was at the Circle K, I was seeing a lot of polices and stuff going through. [34:39] And I was wondering, I was, like, you know what I'm saying, you know, a lot of stuff goes on and aching to where you're like, you'd be like, okay, it's the police or whatever. [34:45] But, you know, I didn't know that it was in my house, but my girlfriend, at the time, she didn't have service. [34:51] She didn't have service on her phone, so she couldn't call me to let me know anything that was going on. [34:54] So she just ended up calling 911. [34:56] So when I came back to the house, before I got on my road, I seen a police truck with a drone out. [35:03] And then that's when I started speeding up because I was like, it's something going down, like, close to my house. [35:07] When I got turned on my road, I seen a whole bunch of polices, like, right at my house. [35:11] So that's when I hurried up, and I got to the house, and I was like, what's going on? [35:13] I thought my girlfriend was in labor because she was supposed to have a baby, you know what I'm saying, soon. [35:18] So she ended up having a child that same night, on July 1st. [35:21] But she came up crying to me, saying, my job is missing. [35:26] And I'm like, what the fuck? [35:27] Like, I kind of freaked out. [35:30] And the detectives were telling me I couldn't go look and stuff like that because they didn't want me to mess up the area or whatever. [35:35] But that's basically what happened up until all just came about. [35:39] Okay, do you, is she known to run away? [35:43] Like, has there been past issues with that, with her? [35:45] Is she known to do that? [35:47] No, she does not run away. [35:48] But I will say that she is friendly. [35:51] Like, she's friendly. [35:52] Like, she doesn't, she doesn't, like, it's not a stranger danger thing with her. [35:56] It's not like a, oh, get away from me. [35:58] Like, she didn't get that. [35:59] She didn't understand that she was just all friendly to everybody. [36:02] She was very respectful. [36:03] Like, yes, ma'am, no, ma'am. [36:05] Yes, sir. [36:05] No, sir. [36:06] Like, that's what she do. [36:08] We raised her great. [36:10] Like, she was a real smart kid. [36:12] That's why, like, they had me kind of, like, messed up. [36:14] But they were saying that she was not, like, she's nonverbal and that. [36:17] Like, yeah, she was, like, she's autistic. [36:20] And that was, like, media was, like, messing, I don't want to the cuss, but that was messing my head a little bit. [36:26] Because they don't even have a good description of my child to try to describe her. [36:29] What's a good, is she autistic or is she on the spectrum at all? [36:34] Is that true? [36:35] She was on the spectrum when she was born. [36:37] But they said that she couldn't be tested until she was four years old. [36:41] Okay, so it's, you guys just don't know. [36:44] Exactly. [36:44] Gotcha. [36:45] We never got her tested and she's never given a sign that she is, you know, [36:50] autistic. [36:51] She talks good. [36:52] She's, like, very, like, she's talking better than me. [36:56] Like, honestly. [36:57] Like, she got more respect than me. [36:59] Understood. [37:00] So you guys had no idea what could have happened to her? [37:04] I have no clue. [37:06] Like, like, sir. [37:07] I don't, like, it's really wild. [37:17] But I had, like I said, I had, I gave all these detectives information about people snooping around the house. [37:23] And lately, like, since I've started work, like, from Friday. [37:27] Well, Thursday, really. [37:29] But from Friday to Monday, I had to work. [37:33] I was working night shifts. [37:34] And every time I left, my girl, like, what she would tell me, like, oh, it's been people doing this. [37:40] And then the third round, they had been called. [37:42] Like, they'd be on the phone with people, like, around the house. [37:44] Like, just talking and walking real slow and things like that. [37:48] And I've been telling them that. [37:52] But. [37:53] How are you doing through all of this? [37:57] I mean, I didn't, I mean, I didn't got. [38:01] It's okay. [38:03] I didn't got, I didn't got a little bit of it out. [38:04] But it's like, not knowing is, is, is killing me. [38:10] It's killing me, like. [38:12] Because, like, I mean, you see stuff like this often. [38:15] But you don't expect it to be you. [38:19] And is, uh, the mother, is she your wife? [38:22] No, she's not my wife. [38:23] She, she was my girlfriend. [38:24] Okay. [38:25] Uh, how is she doing? [38:27] She's, she's still a little torn. [38:29] But she, she's making it. [38:30] She's trying to stay calm. [38:31] You know, we just, like I said, we just recently had a child. [38:34] She had to, like, really go in labor early. [38:36] Because all the stress that was going down, she had that baby the same night. [38:40] And all of this happened. [38:44] So that's the interview I did with the father on Thursday this week. [38:47] While the search was actively going on. [38:50] Again, obviously, there are more questions we would have asked. [38:54] And for full transparency, I'll give you a rundown quickly of how we came about that interview. [38:58] It had been a few days, obviously, since that search started on Tuesday. [39:02] This was Thursday. [39:03] And I started reaching out to family. [39:05] I got in, I got a call from a number that I didn't recognize from Chester. [39:09] I answered it and he started talking to me. [39:11] And I said, slow down a minute. [39:13] Who is this? [39:13] He said, I'm the father. [39:15] I said, the father of who? [39:16] He said, Javaya. [39:17] And that's when I started recording. [39:18] And that's where you hear that phone call happen. [39:21] Now, there are obviously more questions I would have asked. [39:24] It was about an eight minute phone call I had with him. [39:26] And I stopped him and I said, well, would you be willing to do an on-camera interview with us [39:31] to answer more questions, get some pleas out to the public, what people can do so we can [39:37] learn more about Javaya as well? [39:39] He said, yeah. [39:40] And we were set to meet up at 3 p.m. on Thursday. [39:43] We had a meeting location. [39:45] I went there, never heard anything from him. [39:47] So at around 3 o'clock, 3 o'clock, I remember it. [39:50] I was sitting in the car with my photojournalist and I called him and he answered and I said, [39:55] hey, this is Will from News 12. [39:57] And he immediately hung up on me. [39:58] So there was no interview after the fact. [40:01] And looking back at that interview and knowing what we know now and then what he said during [40:07] that interview, I mean, you heard it. [40:09] He was almost joking around in that call saying she has better manners than I do. [40:13] And a lot of you listening to this have pointed something out that a lot of people have. [40:18] And I didn't catch it when I was initially on that phone call with him. [40:21] There was a lot of past tense used in that conversation that he had with me. [40:26] And that story that he told us was more than likely not true at all in some capacity because [40:33] we know Javaya has been missing for a month and has been deceased and was dead at the time [40:38] of that phone call. [40:40] And he said that the mother was torn up over this. [40:43] You heard me ask him, you don't know what happened? [40:45] And he said, I have no idea. [40:47] And he almost sounded like he got choked up a little bit and got emotional during that [40:51] call. [40:52] But it immediately went back to having a normal conversation after that. [40:55] That's just my takeaway from it and what we heard from that phone call. [41:00] And you heard him say that my girlfriend was pregnant. [41:02] This is not his wife that you're seeing on the screen. [41:04] This is his girlfriend. [41:05] And the night that Mishilah called 911 to report that Javaya had been missing, she went [41:16] into labor later that night with another child and was in the hospital. [41:19] So she gave birth that night. [41:21] And that child is now with family. [41:23] So they were going through this search and everything was going on that week. [41:28] And then she was in the hospital because people were asking where mom was. [41:31] So she was in the hospital dealing with that, obviously, while this search was going on. [41:36] And Javaya had been dead for a month. [41:39] And they believe that she had been dead. [41:41] And she's not even in the area, according to what law enforcement has told us. [41:45] A really complex story. [41:46] I understand that's a lot of information. [41:48] It's all on our website, too. [41:50] It's on our Facebook pages. [41:51] We've been keeping this updated. [41:53] And that's about it. [41:57] We'll have more information on the court hearings as we learn when that will be. [42:03] We know it'll be in the next 30 days or so. [42:06] And we'll keep you guys updated. [42:11] I can try to answer some questions. [42:13] There are a lot of you in some of these platforms. [42:17] So if you guys have any questions, I'm happy to try to answer anything I can. [42:21] Again, if you're just now joining us, you see it on your screen. [42:24] Both parents were denied bond today, but they will have to go to a circuit court judge in South Carolina [42:29] because the homicide by child abuse charge is a charge that carries life in jail or death or life in prison, excuse me, or death. [42:38] And that judge you heard this morning is not able to do that, does not have the authority to set bond for a charge like that. [42:45] So they will have to go to a circuit court judge. [42:49] And I think we can play that video of dad being in court. [42:54] We'll play that one more time for you guys so you guys can hear that. [42:59] Maybe. [43:00] Okay. [43:15] Let's see. [43:16] All right. [43:16] Let's see. [43:17] Unless you told him to stay. [43:18] Mr. Harris, today is Sunday, July 5th, 2026. [43:38] My name is Judge Thornton, and you're in bond court. [43:44] The bond is set, and if you can meet the requirements of the bond, you will be released from this facility. [43:50] However, being released on bond will have no effect on your charges or your day in court. [43:57] You've been charged with homicide by child abuse, which carries a prison sentence, if convicted, of 20 years to life. [44:09] You understand that? [44:10] Yes. [44:10] You have the right to a jury trial. [44:15] You also have the right and obligation to attend all court proceedings. [44:18] You have the right to represent yourself and get your own attorney. [44:24] If you cannot afford to hire an attorney, the court may have an attorney to represent you. [44:30] We will start that qualification process today, but it is up to you to follow up. [44:38] Your case is going to be heard in General Sessions Court, so after today's preliminary application, [44:49] you will be given an opportunity to meet with the public defender's office to confirm if that's the direction you want to go. [44:59] Court dates, times, and locations of all future court dates and proceedings will be included in the paperwork that I'm going to give you today. [45:07] The charges that will be heard in General Sessions Court, you also have a right to a preliminary hearing. [45:16] A preliminary hearing does not determine if you are guilty or not guilty. [45:19] It simply confirms that there's probable cause sufficient to move forward to trial with the charges that you face. [45:29] Understanding all this and the charges and the penalties that you face, [45:34] do you want to see if you qualify for a court-appointed attorney or do you plan on contesting these charges by retaining your own legal counsel? [46:16] Question. [46:16] Let's just see if you qualify for a court-appointed attorney. [46:23] Are you employed anywhere? [46:25] Where do you work? [46:26] DHL, Bridgestone. [46:28] Say that again for me? [46:31] DHL, Bridgestone. [46:33] Do you get paid weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly? [46:46] Weekly. [46:47] And what do you, on average, bring home every week? [46:50] It was my first check. [46:53] I haven't seen it before. [46:54] So you don't know. [47:01] All right, besides you, how many of us live in the household with you? [47:04] Does she contribute to the financial status of the house as well? [47:16] You also have a first initial court appearance date set up for September 18th of this year at 9 a.m. [47:46] in the main courtroom at the Aiken County Judicial Center, 109 Park Avenue, southeast in Aiken. [47:53] Once again, don't try to keep up with all these numbers and dates in your head. [47:57] It'll be a part of the paperwork that I'll give you in just a few minutes. [47:59] Remember that you also have a right to request a preliminary hearing and paperwork and include it as well. [48:14] You've got 10 days to submit that paperwork, and that 10 days starts today. [48:18] Now, with regards to the charge, you're here to have a bond set, but this court does not have the authority or the jurisdiction to set a bond for a sentence of a crime that could get you life in prison. [48:39] So today's bond is being denied, and it's also being transferred to the circuit court, where a circuit court judge will hear this case in the next 30 days, and a circuit court judge will set the bond for the charge. [49:06] But for now, there is no bond, all right? [49:10] And I do not qualify you at this point for a court-appointed attorney, so it would be my advice to you to seek legal counsel to represent you as you move forward. [49:27] Best of luck to you. [49:30] We're adjourned. [49:32] With Victim Services, we are asking that he complies with DSS requirements. [49:36] Yes. [49:38] Thank you, Victim Services. [49:39] I appreciate that. [49:40] You comply with DSS's requirements. [49:43] Yes. [49:43] All right. [49:44] That's a condition of the bond. [49:49] Very good. [49:50] Thank you. [49:50] Thank you. [50:01] Let's let him start his paperwork and then... [50:04] Can't show where it's our lady. [50:13] All right. [50:26] Again, that was the bond hearing for Jamarie Harris, who's the father of four-year-old Javaya Harris. [50:33] The mother also had a bond hearing this morning. [50:35] Both denied bond. [50:36] Both will have to go to a circuit court judge to address that homicide by child abuse charge, which will be in the next 30 days, so we'll keep you updated with that. [50:43] But he heard the judge say before court was adjourned, he said, [50:46] Good luck to you as he tries to find counsel to represent him in this case. [50:52] We do have some photos that we want to show you. [50:55] Our crews after court went out to the house in the neighborhood where Javaya was allegedly last seen, which we know that is not true. [51:01] But this is the house that the parents lived in, and you can see a little memorial here. [51:07] This was not out there yesterday, but some flowers and some stuffed animals. [51:11] And most importantly, the Minnie Mouse stuffed animal there. [51:16] That was what Javaya was last seen in, was Minnie Mouse pajamas. [51:20] And that's what was on the description of her when she was reported missing by her mother. [51:26] So some good gestures there by the community, but I'm sure memorials will continue to grow. [51:30] It gives me goosebumps just seeing those pictures there. [51:33] Just a terrible story, and this community has been through so much trying to get answers and trying to bring Javaya home. [51:40] But again, the Minnie Mouse stuffed animal, really powerful symbol for what everyone has been through and the story behind Javaya. [51:48] And again, the search for Javaya still continues here today as they try to bring her home and recover her [51:54] so we can finally understand what happened, and hopefully they can find her so we get some answers [51:59] and get some justice for her too moving forward. [52:01] I know that's what the FBI said yesterday, is that they were hoping to bring her home [52:05] so that they can give the family some closure and bring some justice for Javaya. [52:11] But I think this is going to wrap up our coverage today. [52:14] Again, both parents denied. [52:15] My bond will be behind bars until further notice, until they get another bond hearing in about 30 days [52:21] for the circuit court judge. [52:22] But if you guys aren't from here or if you need to catch up, we have our full coverage. [52:26] You can see it there on the bottom of your screen, WRDW.com. [52:30] We have extensive team coverage on this entire case. [52:35] And we're also on Facebook, all of the reporters. [52:38] We have Meredith, Meredith Anderson, WRDW. [52:40] My name, Will Rio, WRDW, Sydney Hood, WRDW, Nick Proto. [52:45] All of the anchors here, all the reporters have been posting live updates. [52:49] So if you guys want to keep up to date with what's going on and get the latest in factual information, [52:54] you can go to our website. [52:56] You can go to our Facebook page. [52:57] You can shoot us messages. [52:59] Shoot us emails if you have questions or if you have any tips or information. [53:02] We'll try to answer those and get to some of those tips because we're still looking into this. [53:07] We're backgrounding people. [53:08] We're backgrounding some of the information that's out there. [53:11] So again, we appreciate you guys tuning in. [53:13] I hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th of July yesterday and had a good holiday weekend too. [53:18] But as soon as we get more updates, we'll keep you guys posted. [53:21] We appreciate you watching. [53:22] We appreciate you watching.