Woman to testify on pregnant mom's death

A high school classmate of a suspended police officer who is accused of killing his pregnant girlfriend pleaded guilty Monday to helping dispose of the body and agreed to testify against him.

Myisha Ferrell, 30, quietly pleaded guilty to complicity to abuse a corpse and obstruction of justice — for lying to authorities — just before opening statements were to begin in her jury trial. She was sentenced to two years in prison but will be eligible for release after one year as part of a plea deal.

The plea gives prosecutors a witness with firsthand knowledge of the crime, but it leaves many questions in the case publicly unanswered until Bobby L. Cutts Jr.'s trial on aggravated murder and other charges begins Feb. 4. He could face the death penalty if convicted.

Ferrell had faced as many as six years in prison if convicted on both counts in the slaying of Jessie Davis, whose disappearance in June drew national attention as thousands searched for her for more than a week near her northeast Ohio home.

Davis' body, with a nearly full-term fetus, was found more than a week later about 25 miles away in a remote area of a park.

Ferrell's attorney, John Alexander, said after the hearing that plea negotiations were "contentious" and that his client's testimony is important.

"She is very upset about the whole situation. Unfortunately, I'm not allowed to go into her side of the story," said Alexander, citing Cutts' pending trial.

Messages left Monday with Cutts' attorneys, Fernando Mack and Myron Watson, were not immediately returned.

Stark County prosecutor John Ferrero wouldn't comment about what weight Ferrell's testimony would carry at Cutts' trial. Relatives of Davis support the plea deal for Ferrell, he said.

"It's a good solution," Ferrero said.

Davis' mother, father and sister left the courthouse without commenting on the plea.

Investigators believe Davis, 26, was killed in her home June 14 in northeast Ohio's Lake Township, near North Canton. For nine days she was considered missing, and thousands gathered to search grassy fields and woods close to her home about 45 miles south of Cleveland.

A day after Davis was killed, her mother, Patricia Porter, found her 2 1/2-year-old grandson, Blake, alone in Davis' home. Investigators said the boy provided them with the first clues, saying: "Mommy was crying. Mommy broke the table. Mommy's in rug."

Davis' body was found June 23 about 20 miles away from her home.

Cutts and Davis had a son together, and her family has said they believe Cutts also was the father of her unborn daughter, whom she had planned to name Chloe.