Shaq Paid For Shaniya Davis' Funeral...National Spotlight On NC

Mourners pay tribute to slain 5-year-old. Thousands gather to remember 5-year-old North Carolina girl Shaniya Davis, who police say was abducted, raped and murdered earlier this month. NBC’s Ron Mott reports.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Shaniya's dad: ‘She touched a lot of people’. In an exclusive interview with TODAY’s Meredith Vieira, Brad Lockhart, the father of 5-year-old Shaniya Davis, who was abducted and murdered earlier this month, remembers his daughter and talks about the allegations against her mother.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Shaquille O’Neal pays for slain girl’s (Shaniya Davis') funeral


Basketball star Shaquille O'Neal has paid for the funeral of a 5-year-old North Carolina girl whose kidnapping and slaying received national news coverage.

The Fayetteville Observer in North Carolina reported Thursday that the Cleveland Cavaliers player was touched by the case of Shaniya Davis.

More than 2,000 people attended her funeral Sunday. The girl's body was found Nov. 16 beside a rural road.

Her mother, Antionette Davis, is charged with human trafficking and child abuse involving prostitution. Mario McNeill is charged with murder, rape and kidnapping.

The funeral home declined to say what the service cost.

A Cavaliers official did not return calls from The Associated Press early Thursday. The funeral home declined comment.





NBA great Shaquille O'Neal pays for Shaniya's funeral



The story of what happened to Shaniya Davis has affected thousands of people, including NBA star Shaquille O'Neal, who paid for the slain 5-year-old child's funeral.

"He was very touched by the story, and requested how to get in touch with the family," said a Cleveland Cavaliers spokesperson, who confirmed Wednesday that O'Neal paid for the service.

More than 2,000 people attended Shaniya's funeral at Manna Church on Sunday. She was buried at Fayetteville Memorial Cemetery.

Corey Breece, of Rogers and Breece Funeral Home, would not reveal Wednesday the cost of the child's service. However, he said the cost of a child's funeral "averages around $4,500."

Bradley Lockhart, 39, the child's father, could not be reached for comment. A family friend, Vaughn Eason, said the family was out of town for the holidays.

Shaniya's body was found Nov. 16 in a wooded area off N.C. 87 south of Sanford, six days after she was reported missing by her mother.

Mario McNeill, 29, is charged with first degree kidnapping, murder and rape in the case. McNeill turned himself into police on Nov.13 after he was seen on surveillance video at a Sanford hotel holding Shaniya in his arms.

Antoinette Davis, 25, the child's mother, is charged with human trafficking and child abuse involving prostitution against her daughter.

Davis and McNeill are incarcerated in state prison facilities in Raleigh until their next scheduled court dates.

Davis will appear back in Cumberland County on Dec. 3. McNeill's court date is scheduled for Dec. 9.

"I was sitting at home watching it on the news and the story brought a tear to my eye," Shaq, as he is commonly known, told The Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper on Wednesday night.

He first asked to get in touch with the Lockhart family on Nov. 18, the day after the State Medical Examiner's office confirmed that a child's body found in Lee County on Nov. 16 was in fact Shaniya's.

Bradley Lockhart and his family had setup a trust fund in memory of Shaniya to help raise money to pay for the funeral.

Eason said last week that any leftover funds earmarked for Shaniya's funeral would go to local charities, groups and agencies that help neglected or abused children.

"Being a law enforcement guy that investigates crimes against children, I wanted to be able to help in some way," Shaq told the Cleveland newspaper.

Shaq completed reserve officer's training when he lived in Los Angeles and Miami, the Cavaliers spokesperson said Wednesday. His last certification was in 2005.

Performing random acts of kindness is nothing new for Shaq.

Last year, according to the Cleveland newspaper, he paid for the funeral of NBA Hall of Famer George Mikan.

In 2007, Shaq had his own reality television show, "Shaq's Big Challenge," in which he helped children of middle school age lose weight and live a healthy lifestyle.

He was traded to the Cavaliers this past summer to be their new center. He stands at just more than 7feet tall.

Shaq, who is recovering from a shoulder injury, sat out his sixth consecutive game Wednesday night against the Detroit Pistons.



View Larger Map


Sources: MSNBC, Fay Observer, Google Maps

Shaniya's Dad Shares His Grief & Anger On NBC's "Today Show"...He Has A Lawyer

Shaniya Davis' dad speaks to Today Show's Meredith Vieira about his child's death and Human Trafficking.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

NC dad (Bradley Lockhart) defends letting mom take girl (Shaniya Davis) later slain


The father of a North Carolina girl who was kidnapped and killed said Tuesday he made the best decision he could at the time when he let her live with her mother, who has since been charged with prostituting the child.

Bradley Lockhart said during an interview on NBC's "Today Show" that he regrets how the decision turned out, but thought he was making the right choice for the daughter he had raised himself.

"We obviously make decisions in life that sometimes have repercussions or adverse situations that drift from our decision. We just have to continue to believe in God and hope that our decisions are the correct ones," he said.

Lockhart said he last saw Shaniya in early October as he left for an out-of-state work assignment. The girl moved in with Antoinette Davis, 25, about a week later after initially staying with Lockhart's sister, he said.

The father said he spoke to Davis after she reported the girl missing Nov. 10. Police said she was killed the same day. Lockhart said he hasn't spoken to Davis since she was charged last week with human trafficking and child abuse by prostitution of her daughter.

Mario McNeill, an acquaintance of Davis, is charged with murder, rape and kidnapping.

Authorities in Cumberland County said Tuesday that Davis had been moved from the county jail to the North Carolina Correctional Center for Women in Raleigh.

Lockhart said he didn't think he missed any warning signs that Shaniya would be at risk if he accepted Davis's request to help raise the girl. He has said Davis struggled financially over the years, but she had recently gotten a job and her own place.

"I don't think I really missed any (signs). Of course there's always speculation. There's always things you could look at and say, well maybe, maybe not," Lockhart said.

The North Carolina Child Fatality Task Force will review contacts the Cumberland County Department of Social Services had with Davis, who also has a 7-year-old son, The Fayetteville Observer reported Tuesday.

"This is a family that was already known to social service workers down there," task force co-chairman Tom Vitaglione said. "They are all very distraught about the whole thing."

The task force is charged with investigating every child death in the state, said Kevin Kelley a spokesman for the state's child welfare services. It will not begin looking into the Davis case until all criminal actions have been resolved or until a year after Shaniya's death, whichever comes later, Kelley said.

The task force will look at when local social services workers first contacted the family, the status of the case and whether proper procedures were followed, Vitaglione said. Investigators also will consider the impact of state and local budget cuts on social service agencies, he said.

"Child protective service divisions have been hit particularly hard," Vitaglione said.





Thousands gather at Shaniya Davis' Funeral


Shaniya Davis, the 5-year-old girl who police say was taken from her home and then raped and murdered, was laid to rest Sunday.

More than two thousand people attended the funeral at Manna Church in Fayetteville.


At one point, more than a hundred looked through the windows of the church door because they couldn't get in.

Bradley Lockhart, Shaniya's father, was not scheduled to speak but got up and encouraged the community to not get angry about the situation.

He turned to his daughter's rose-colored casket and said "I know you're going to be waiting for me [in heaven], I'll see you when I get there."

Shaniya's brother, Byron Coleman, got up to speak but was obviously too overcome with emotion to say anything.

Shaniya's aunt, Carey Lockhart-Davis, read a story she wrote for Shaniya.

Brad Lockhart told one of the pastors he wanted this funeral to be a "homegoing" celebration.

Davis disappeared from her home last Tuesday and her body was found in a wooded area just south of Sanford.

Police say Davis was raped and strangled. Mario McNeill, 29, is charged with the crime. He allegedly admitted kidnapping the girl.

Police announced Thursday that Cumberland County will have jurisdiction in the case. The investigation has been tough for veteran detectives.

"And it's still pretty emotional - still up and down," Captain Mark Bidgeman with the Fayetteville Police Department said. "You know, it's one of those things. It's the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my career."

According to court documents, McNeill killed the 5-year-old the same day she was reported missing from her mother's mobile home in Fayetteville.

Shaniya's mother, Antoinette Davis, 25, is charged with human trafficking and child abuse involving prostitution.

McNeill previously was charged with kidnapping. The newest charges against him include first-degree rape of a child and first-degree murder.

McNeill made a court appearance for the new charges on Friday. He could face the death penalty if convicted.




View Larger Map


Sources: MSNBC, Today Show, CBS News, Examiner, ABC News, Zimbio, Fay observer, CNN, Google Maps