Mother of a boy who was found dead stuffed in a suitcase seeks to have her case dismissed

SALEM – Dejuane Anderson, whose 5-year-old son’s body was found stuffed in a suitcase and thrown in the woods, has filed ten new motions in Washington Circuit Court requesting a variety of requests.

Dejaune Anderson

On March 15, 38-year-old Dejaune Anderson was arrested in Arcadia, California, for the murder of her son Cairo Ammar Jordan. Her charges include murder, neglect of a dependent resulting in death, and obstruction of justice.

Cairo Ammar Jordan

In April 2022, a mushroom hunter found Cairo Ammar Jordan’s body. His mother had stuffed his tiny body in a suitcase and thrown it in the woods. An autopsy found that the boy died from an electrolyte imbalance due to vomiting and diarrhea that led to dehydration. Investigators said Cairo died about a week or less before the mushroom hunter came upon the little boy’s body.

Anderson made several Facebook and Twitter posts between December 2021 and April 2022 saying she believed her son was a “demon who needed to be killed or exorcised.”

Anderson requests Judge Larry Medlock dismiss her case, claiming her arrest and extradition to Indiana were illegal.

She also asks Judge Medlock to recuse himself from the case, citing alleged bias against her. She also requested to fire her attorney and represent herself.

“The bias and prejudice experienced by [me] are grounds making a fair trial impossible,” she wrote.

Anderson says she is also being held against her will in solitary confinement. In her letters to the court, Anderson says that’s unnecessary and is fighting back against Judge Medlock’s order to undergo a psychiatric evaluation. Saying she is not suicidal or mentally ill.

Anderson also claims to have been placed under “MK Ultra mind control” while at the Washington County jail. She claims “chemicals” have been placed in her food daily and argued “hazardous materials” were placed in air vents to cause bodily irritation.

Judge Medlock says he will not rule on any of the requests until Anderson undergoes a psychological evaluation.

On Tuesday, Prosecutor Tara Coats Hunt informed the court that the state’s discovery included hundreds of documents, including photos, text messages, police bodycam video, interviews, and search warrants from numerous online accounts. Prosecutor Tara Coats Hunt informed the court that the state’s discovery included hundreds of pages of documents, including photos, text messages, police bodycam video, interviews, and search warrants from numerous online accounts.

The witness list contains nearly three dozen law enforcement officers. It also lists Jeff Meredith, the mushroom hunter who found Jordan’s body; Dawn Coleman, the other woman charged in the death; and an Indiana priest Anderson contacted about doing an exorcism on the boy.

During her initial hearing in April, Anderson claimed, “I’ve been under NSA surveillance for the past eight months,” Anderson told Washington County Circuit Judge Larry Medlock, “and how can that qualify me as a fugitive on the run when I’ve also had a detail from Space Force that was following my every move?” 

When Judge Medlock asked Anderson to identify herself, she replied with another name beginning with “Princess,” and said she was “representing the entity of Anderson.”

Dawn Coleman

A second woman charged in the case reached a plea deal with prosecutors in November.

Dawn Coleman, 41, of Shreveport, Louisiana, was sentenced to 30 years in prison with five years suspended to probation after pleading guilty to aiding, inducing, or causing murder, neglect of a dependent resulting in death, and obstruction of justice.

Anderson remains at the Washington Jail without bond and will be in court for a pre-trial hearing on June 20.