Son testifies he saw father shoot 10-year-old Breasia Terrell

DAVENPORT — Henry Dinkins’ son testified in court that he saw his father shoot Breasia Terrell.

That assertion was made for the first time Monday in a Scott County courtroom after the 11-year-old boy returned to the witness stand for a second day and told defense attorney Chad Frese that he saw his father shoot and kill Terrell.

Dinkins is charged with first-degree kidnapping and first-degree murder of Terrell, who was 10 years old when she disappeared on July 10, 2020. Remains of her body were discovered in a DeWitt pond in March 2021.

Identified in court as D.L., the boy is Breasia Terrell’s younger half brother and was 8 at the time of her death. Throughout the testimony, D.L. offered some contradictory answers and appeared confused at times.

When Frese asked if D.L. was telling the truth about seeing Breasia's murder — pointing out that he told investigators he saw Dinkins and Dinkins’ girlfriend, Andrea Culberson, take Breasia from the car before he heard two shots — the boy answered, "Everything I say is true."

Aishia Lankford, Breasia's mother, testified Monday for Scott County Attorney Kelly Cunningham. Her testimony took close to three hours. Culberson, Dinkins' girlfriend, was the third and last witness called Monday.

Shocking testimony

Breasia and D.L. spent the night with Dinkins and Culberson at Culberson's apartment the night prior to Breasia’s disappearance.

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After testifying he saw Breasia's murder while being cross-examined by Frese, the boy repeated the claim under redirect questioning by Scott County Assistant Prosecutor Liz O’Donnell.

She asked D.L. if the last time he saw his sister was “at Andrea’s apartment?”

He responded yes.

O’Donnell then repeated, “Was that the last time you saw Breasia?”

D.L. answered, “When she got shot.”

O’Donnell then asked, “Were you afraid to tell people she got shot?” He answered, “Yes.”

O’Donnell asked “Was it hard to tell people?” He again answered, "Yes."

The prosecutor asked the boy whether he was scared.

"No," he answered.

“Were you afraid you’d get in trouble?” O'Donnell asked.

D.L. answered, “Something like that.”

The testimony came after Frese picked at D.L.’s testimony, pointing out inconsistencies. Frese reminded D.L. of his assertion to police and during testimony in court that Dinkins stopped to go fishing during the morning Breasia was missing.

Frese also questioned D.L.'s testimony about seeing Dinkins using bleach to clean a machete "with blood on it," pointing out the boy never said that to police during initial interviews.

During the boy's testimony on Friday, he said Dinkins picked up D.L. and Breasia on July 9, 2020. He told the court Breasia went missing sometime in the night. He testified that Dinkins returned to the apartment two times in the early morning hours of July 10, 2020 and Breasia was not present. On a third trip to the apartment, Dinkins picked up D.L., the boy testified.

D.L.’s testimony became confused Monday, as he did not previously say he witnessed Breasia’s murder until he was cross-examined by Frese.

A text at 8:08 a.m.

Lankford took the witness stand Monday and offered a narrative about the events of July 10, 2020.

Her day started with an early text from her manager at Checkers restaurant on Locust Street. She was scheduled to work later in the morning, but the manager needed help with opening.

Lankford testified that she brushed her teeth and hustled to work. She arrived at 8:04 a.m. Four minutes later, her world began to crumble.

Cellphone records introduced by Cunningham showed that at 8:08 a.m. Dinkins texted Lankford. The message read: "I just woke up and (Breasia) is gone."

In her testimony, Lankford described her rising panic as she tried to reach Dinkins. During one brief conversation, Lankford said Dinkins told her he was headed to the Davenport Police Department to report Breasia missing.

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Then Lankford described how she left work and set out on Locust Street, intending to stop at the police station. She saw Dinkins drive past her, and Lankford made a U-turn and followed him. She said he finally turned into the McDonald's on the corner of East Kimberly and Middle Road.

"I was screaming," Lankford told the court. "I told him to give me back my son."

Lankford said Dinkins " … kept saying 'I don't know; I just woke up and she wasn't there,' and I knew he was lying. I just knew something wasn't right. It just didn't make sense."

During cross-examination, Frese asked Lankford when D.L. told her he witnessed the killing of Breasia, and specifically, if it was before or after Lankford learned that her daughter had been shot.

Lankford said she didn't remember.

Frese did establish that in the hours after Breasia disappeared, D.L. was questioned and was driven around the Credit Island area, and Lankford was present. Lankford acknowledged that at that time D.L. never mentioned seeing Breasia murdered or Dinkins cleaning a bloody machete.

"I felt sick“

Culberson told the court she went to sleep at around 11:30 p.m. on the night of July 9, 2020. Dinkins, Breasia and D.L. were still awake, and the children were in the bedroom playing video games.

Culberson testified that she woke up at around 3 a.m. on July 10, 2020 to use the bathroom. It was at that time she discovered Breasia was not in the bed. As she looked around the apartment, she quickly realized both Breasia and Dinkins were gone.

Cunningham asked Culberson how she felt.

"Scared," she replied. "And I felt sick to my stomach."

Later, Culberson said, "Something was wrong," because Breasia was gone, D.L. was still in the apartment, and she discovered that Dinkins had left his phone behind.

During Friday's testimony, D.L. told the court that Dinkins gave him and Breasia T-shirts to wear to bed the night before his sister disappeared. Culberson confirmed that story, telling Cunningham she thought Dinkins wore a 4XL shirt at that time.

She added a haunting detail.

Culberson said when Dinkins returned for the first time at 3:30 a.m. on July 10, 2020 she looked out her bedroom window while Dinkins searched a bedroom closet for something. While looking out the window, she said, she saw Breasia standing by Dinkins' maroon Impala.

Cunningham asked her how she knew it was Breasia.

"Her hair was very distinctive," Culberson said. "And there was that gigantic T-shirt she was wearing."