Trial continues for Ga. woman accused of killing girlfriend’s daughter

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - The Gwinnett County trial of Celeste Owens, accused of murder in the death of 8-year-old Amari Hall in 2021, continues Thursday.

Police believe Owens hit Amari in the head several times. Prosecutors says the girl’s mother, Brittany Hall, knew about the alleged crime, and both women tried to cover it up.

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Investigators said Amari Hall’s body was dumped in a wooded area in DeKalb County.

On Wednesday, the state called three witnesses to the stand.

Officer Jonathon Sorensen with the Gwinnett County Police Department said he responded to an extended stay hotel after Brittany reported her daughter missing.

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Detectives said Brittany Hall told them she homeschooled Amari and her siblings, and they had been living at the hotel.

Police said Brittany Hall suggested her daughter wandered off the day she went missing back in 2021.

“Brittany had even said that she had, before she had went to bed, when she got home at midnight, she had deadbolted the hotel door, and like the top latch that hotels have,” Sorensen said. “She had locked that as well, but when she woke up, the door was cracked open. And she said, because Amari is really smart, so she knew that if she shut the door, it would wake them up, that’s why Amari left it cracked.”

Both Owens and Brittany Hall are facing multiple charges, including murder. Hall will be on trial at a later date.