Update 8/10 – We’ve updated the story by correcting a name of one of the hospitals, along with correcting the name of a witnesses’ testimony. Z107.7 regrets the errors.
The mother of Parker Lee Schumacher was called to the stand Wednesday to testify in the case of the State of California vs. Arthur Davies.
Karissa Caccavari began dating Arthur Davies in December of 2017 and had moved in with Davies to a residence in January of 2018. Caccavari described a rocky relationship not long after that, with text messages produced by the prosecution that shows Karissa and Arthur disagreeing over how Karissa’s son Parker was disciplined – the mother stated early in her testimony that Davies “thought I should discipline in ways that I didn’t want to discipline him in.”
Caccavari went on to describe a change in Parker’s demeanor when Arthur Davies was present – saying the normally independent and happy child turned clingy when Davies was around, including the day in question where Arthur Davies is accused of causing the blunt force trauma that ended 17-month-old Parker Lee Schumacher’s life.
Prosecuting attorney Charles Tseui walked the mother through February 10th of 2018 – the day in question. Caccavari said she was doing laundry in a nearby laundry room about “15 feet” away from the trailer her and Davies were living in. Caccavari says she left about four times to change the laundry, gone for no more than 4 or 5 minutes at a time. The fourth time Caccavari briefly left to the laundry room is when she returned to find her son on the living room floor with Davies – who reportedly asked her “has he done this before?”
Caccavari took Parker and Davies asked if he should call 911 – CPR was administered by Davies until the dispatcher asked the them to stop and count Parker’s breaths.
Prosecution ended their initial round of questioning showing 8 photographs – 4 before the incident showing a smiling Parker with his Grandma, by himself, and with Davies. Four other photographs followed showing Parker after the day in question – lying in a hospital bed at Hi Desert Medical and in Loma Linda. When asked to identify the pictures, a visibly upset Caccavari said “that’s Parker.”
Defense focused on scrutinizing the timeline provided by the mother, as well as discussing an incident where Parker hit his head a short time before he was murdered the day of February 10th, 2018.
Caccavari also was questioned about described two separate incidents that happened prior to February 10th. She says that a few days before the 10th, she was in the shower when she heard Parker crying, and came out to find what she described as a “handprint” on the 17 month-old’s face. She says she asked Arthur Davies about it, she says “he told me it looks like crib bars, but it didn’t look like crib bars to me – it looked like a handprint.”
Another incident happened sometime in early February or late January. Caccavari says that Parker has stood on the couch and fallen backward over the arm, hitting the back of his head. The next morning, she says the area felt “mushy” and Parker was vomiting and sleepy. Parker was taken to the hospital for observation and released without treatment or medication, and Caccavari says that within a few days the symptoms disappeared.
This incident came up in the Defense’s cross-examination of Karissa Caccavari, where Davies’ attorney Zulu Ali asked the mother if she had suspicions about Davies prior to the February 10th incident. Caccavari says she did not. Ali referred to both of these incidents when questioning the mother about why she would leave Parker with someone she had reservations about.
The court also heard from Stacy and Sarah Steward – sisters and friends of Karissa who babysat Parker daily. They were questioned on Parker’s behavior and health on the days leading up to February 10th.
Stacy Steward said that other than a possible ear infection, Parker was normal on the 9th. Ali asked how Stacy could remember that day in particular if she babysat Parker daily, she replied “it was the last day I watched him, he was in the hospital the next day.”
When asked about Parker, Stacy stated “I loved him like he was my own, like he was mine.”
Testimony continues on Monday morning, August 14th.
