SOMERVILLE, N.J. — The trial began Tuesday for a New Jersey school bus aide charged in the death of a 6-year-old student with special needs .
Amanda Davila has pleaded not guilty to aggravated manslaughter in the 2023 death of Fajr Williams . Authorities say Fajr died after the safety harness on her wheelchair blocked her from breathing as she was on a bus heading to Claremont Elementary School in Somerset.
Prosecutors show video of Fajr Williams being strangled by harness on bus
Both sides made their opening arguments and testimony began with Fajr’s mother, Najmah Nash, taking the stand.
Nash broke down in tears as her daughter’s wheelchair was brought into a Somerset County courtroom.
Prosecutors showed jurors video of Davila rolling the little girl onto a school bus in the wheelchair back in July of 2023.
In the video, Fajr looks happy, playing around at the beginning before being strangled by her harness while Davila spent almost the entire 30-minute bus ride on her cellphone with ear buds in, never looking back .