BELFAST — Sharon Carrillo admitted in court Friday that she had lied to police about the circumstances of her daughter’s death last year, saying she was afraid her husband would hurt her if she didn’t.

Carrillo and her husband, Julio Carrillo, are charged with depraved indifference murder in the beating death of 10-year-old Marissa Kennedy on Feb. 25, 2018. They are accused of beating the girl regularly in the months before her death, as well as the day she died in the condominium they shared in Stockton Springs.

Marissa KennedySharon Carrillo took the stand on the second day of a hearing on a motion to suppress statements she made to police after Marissa’s death.

Carrillo said her husband “whispered in my ear to take 50-percent blame.” Sobbing, she said she did not know what he meant until she was questioned by police a second time.

“After what the detectives told me what Julio admitted to, then I understood what it meant,” she said. “I was scared that he would hurt me if I didn’t confess, if I didn’t take the blame.”

Sharon Carrillo’s attorneys are seeking to suppress statements she made to police on Feb. 25 and 26, 2018. They are also seeking to have her tried separately from her husband, who they say physically and sexually abused both his wife and Marissa.

Defense attorney Chris MacLean showed Sharon Carrillo a photograph of her and her daughter kneeling naked with their arms above their heads, part of the evidence in the case, and asked her to describe what she saw.

“Me and my daughter Marissa Kennedy,” she said. She confirmed the photo was taken in the kitchen of the Stockton Springs condo. MacLean asked if that was the only time she had been in the kneeling position.

“That’s not the only time, no,” she said. She estimated she held the position for 30 minutes to an hour and said it was painful. When MacLean asked if she volunteered to pose for the photo, as her husband told police, she denied doing so. Later, she said she was not aware at the time that a photo had been taken.

“I was forced to by Julio,” she said. She said she was five or six months pregnant at the time.

Seated at a separate defense table, Julio Carrillo shook his head no at her assertion.

Assistant Attorney General Donald Macomber cross-examined Sharon Carrillo.

“Sharon, you’re a liar, is that right?” he said.

“I sometimes lie, yes,” she responded.

Macomber asked about what she told police and health care personnel after Marissa’s death, and she said she had not always told them the truth. The attorney asked if it was a lie when she told them she performed “karate chops” to Marissa’s sides, which she demonstrated to Maine State Police Detective Scott Quintero in a video shown in court the previous day.

“Yes, it was,” she said.

Macomber said Sharon Carrillo told police she hated Marissa because the girl had written a letter saying she hated her and said she didn’t want her to be her mother anymore.

“That was a lie as well,” Sharon Carrillo said.

She admitted she had never indicated to anyone that she was a victim of domestic violence prior to being arrested.

“No, I didn’t tell anybody for a reason,” she said, but did not elaborate.

Regarding Julio Carrillo whispering in her ear to take some of the blame for Marissa’s death, Macomber asked, “That’s something you want the judge to believe?”

“Yes,” she said.

The cross-examination also included questions about Sharon Carrillo’s understanding of instructions from the judge as well as her Miranda rights when being questioned by police after Marissa’s death. Macomber noted that Sharon Carrillo seemed nervous on the stand, which she confirmed. He asked if she had understood all of his questions.

“Some of them, yes,” she responded, clarifying that she had asked that a question be repeated if she did not understand it.

Both sides are expected to file written closing arguments within 10 days and will have another seven days to respond to the opposing argument before Justice Robert Murray rules on whether to suppress Sharon Carrillo’s statements. No additional court dates have been set.

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