Knox County court news: Scheduling hearing held in the Sunshine Stewart murder case, trial date tentatively set for man accused of manslaughter in toddler's death
The following comprises court activity the past week in Knox County for two cases including a hearing held in the Sunshine Stewart murder case and a trial date tentatively scheduled for a man accused of manslaughter in the death of a toddler.
Court to hold another scheduling hearing in the Deven Young murder case
Update: A scheduling hearing was held via Zoom on July 14 with the defense, state, and Deven Young, the 18-year-old accused of murdering Sunshine Stewart in July 2025. Young remains held at the Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland.
Judge Eric Walker presided over the brief hearing, which is the next step to determine if Young will be tried as a juvenile or an adult.
In July 2025, the Office of the Maine Attorney General said that it would seek to have Young charged as an adult in the murder of Stewart.
At the July 14 hearing, Walker said the court will schedule another hearing in three weeks when a date for the bind-over hearing will be discussed.
A report by the state’s forensic services is expected to be provided to the state and defense in two weeks, according to Assistant Attorney General Lisa Bogue.
Defense attorney Caitlyn Smith said the defense needs to read the forensic report before it discusses the timeframe to schedule a bind-over hearing.
The Maine Judicial Branch states the following on its website regarding a bind-over hearing: “If a juvenile is charged with a serious offense-murder, or a Class A, B, or C crime if committed by adult, the State may file a motion to have the juvenile tried as an adult. After the motion is filed, the judge will hold a bind-over hearing to determine if the juvenile should be tried as an adult. At the bind over hearing, the court considers testimony as to the seriousness of the offense, various evaluations, and whether the current juvenile system can provide necessary services to the juvenile. If the juvenile is bound over, all remaining court matters are held in adult criminal court and the juvenile is subject to adult penalties.”
Young turned 18 on Sept. 24, 2025, after the murder of Stewart in July.
Judge Eric Walker ruled on April 29 in a competency order that the defendant is, “competent to proceed based on the court’s finding that the juvenile has a rational as well as a fatual understanding of the proceedings and a sufficient present ability to consult with legal counsel with a reasonable degree of rational understanding.”
A hearing on Young’s issue of competency was held in a closed door hearing held at the Knox County Courthouse on Jan. 30, 2026. Young was present and was represented by Attorney Jeremy Pratt and Attorney Caitlyn Smith. The state was represented by Deputy Attorney General Lisa Bogue, Assistant Attorney General Suzanne Russell, and Assistant District Attorney Lindsay Dean.
The competency report will remain under seal by the court as part of the judge’s order.
Related stories:
https://www.penbaypilot.com/article/deven/269654
Retrial for man charged with the death of toddler in 2024 in Owls Head tentatively scheduled for March 2027
Update: The second trial for Aziayh Scott, 25, of Louisiana, who is accused of manslaughter in connection with the May 2024 death of 22-month-old Quayshawn Wilson has been tentatively rescheduled for March 2027.
A mistrial was declared on Nov. 12, 2025, in Knox County Superior Court after the jury was unable to reach a unanimous decision after two days of deliberation. The trial lasted approximately one week.
Scott remains free on bail which was originally set at $150,000 after he was arrested and then reduced to $35,000. He currently lives in Rockland.
He is represented by his court appointed attorney, Chris MacLean of the Dirigo Law Group LLP, in Camden. The lead prosecutor in the trial is Maine Assistant Attorney General Leanne Robbin. Justice John O’Neill is presiding over the trial.
Scott was indicted on a single count of manslaughter by a Knox County grand jury in October 2024.
The criminal complaint states that Scott “did recklessly or with criminal negligence cause the death of a minor child with a date of birth July 7, 2022.”
Scott who is originally from Louisiana moved to Maine and was living with his girlfriend and the toddler in Owls Head.
On May 29, 2024, at approximately 7:26 p.m., Thomaston Police, Fire and Rescue responded to the Walmart in Thomaston for a report of a child not breathing. The child was transported to Pen Bay Medical Center, where the child was pronounced dead.
A nurse on site was the first to initiate cardiopulmonary resuscitation to the toddler, said police.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta conducted an autopsy on May 30, 2024, and ruled the cause of death was blunt force trauma and the manner of death of was homicide.
The child’s injuries included a lacerated liver and the examiner said in the report that the death producing injury would have likely occurred in the 24 hours proceeding the child’s death, according to the court document.
Detectives learned after going to his residence in Owls Head on June 4, 2025, that the couple had returned to Louisiana.
Maine State Police Detectives coordinated with Louisiana State Police and the U.S. Marshals Service Maine Violent Offender Task Force to arrest Scott, according to the Maine’s Department of Public Safety in a June 5 news release. He was arrested on the same day in New Orleans.
In Maine, the maximum sentence for manslaughter is 30 years in prison.
Related stories:
https://www.penbaypilot.com/article/court-news-column/264165
https://www.penbaypilot.com/article/man-indictedtoddler-death/251624
Reach Sarah Shepherd at news@penbaypilot.com
