Sagadahoc jury convicts Tyler Witham-Jordan of depraved-indifference murder in 3-year-old's death

A Sagadahoc County jury on Tuesday convicted 31-year-old Tyler Witham-Jordan of one count of depraved-indifference murder in the December 2022 death of 3-year-old Makinzlee Handrahan, who lived off Route 1 in Edgecomb with her mother, Faith Lewis, two half-siblings, and Witham-Jordan. The jury returned the unanimous verdict after less than a day of deliberations following a nine-day retrial moved to Sagadahoc County Superior Court.

The 12-member jury - eight men and four women - received the case at 12:30 p.m. on Monday, March 2, and delivered the verdict the next morning, between about 10:00 and 10:30 a.m. The retrial followed a December 2025 mistrial in Lincoln County Superior Court that was granted after Lewis was shown photographs of her daughter and cried out at Witham-Jordan in court.

Emergency responders found Makinzlee unresponsive in her bed early on Christmas morning, Dec. 25, 2022; dispatchers heard Lewis say, "Oh my god, I think my daughter’s dead." First responders transported the child’s body to MaineHealth Lincoln Hospital’s Miles Campus in Damariscotta. Witham-Jordan was heard at the scene saying, "I’m f——d" and "I’m finished."

Maine Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Liam Funte performed an autopsy on Dec. 26, 2022, and concluded the death was "homicide caused by nonaccidental blunt force trauma." Dr. Funte’s findings detailed extensive bruising across the child's body, abrasions on her face, and internal bleeding in the skull and abdomen, with bruises noted to the face, right ear, head, back, and stomach.

Prosecutors presented forensic evidence including DNA identified as Witham-Jordan’s under Makinzlee’s fingernails and on a broken hairbrush containing the child’s hair. County filings and testimony also referenced photographs shown to jurors and 911 audio played at trial. An affidavit filed in the case noted a Maine Department of Health and Human Services investigation about two months before the death after a daycare reported a scratch and bruises; Witham-Jordan was named as a suspect in that prior DHHS probe.

Assistant Attorney General Jennifer Ackerman told jurors in closing, "She was a smart, sassy, beautiful little girl. She died because a person who claimed to love her and care for her could not control his anger, his rage." Prosecutors argued the fatal injuries could only have been inflicted by an adult and suggested the beating occurred sometime after Makinzlee’s nap on Dec. 24, 2022, through the early hours of Dec. 25.

Defense attorneys countered that the case contained significant gaps. Defense attorney James Howaniec said, "This case is more about what’s not in evidence, than what’s in evidence," arguing DNA on household items could reflect caregiving. After the verdict, defense counsel Daniel Dubé emailed that he and the team "have great respect for the jury" but added, "It is difficult to square the verdict with the reasonable doubt standard. There will be a post-judgment filing. We are determining next steps."

Lewis reacted at the courthouse, saying she was happy "the truth came out" and declaring, "They got the right one." Witham-Jordan was arrested in October 2023; sentencing has not been scheduled. Central Maine court filings put the statutory exposure for depraved-indifference murder at 25 years to life.