Closing arguments will take place today in the trial of a man accused in the death of an infant in West Des Moines. Defense attorneys for Matthew Elliott rested their case Monday without calling a single witness.
Closing arguments are scheduled for 10 A.M. Elliott is charged with first-degree murder in the January 2008 death of 7-month-old Alexis Gilbert.
Elliott was a 27-year-old convicted sex offender who had been acting as a child care provider in the baby’s home. He’s accused of killing the girl with a blow to the back of the head. The final witness called by prosecutors Monday was a police detective, who recounted what an eight-year-old boy told him the day the baby died.
The boy, Alexis’ uncle, told the detective Elliott was caring for the girl and he noticed his niece’s head "didn’t look right." The case could be turned over the jury today.