BATON ROUGE — The mother of a girl found dead in a Mississippi forest after being reported missing in Baton Rouge in 2021 turned down a plea deal Thursday that would have seen her sentenced to 10 years or less in prison on a charge of cruelty to juveniles.

Instead, Lanaya Cardwell will go to trial in February on a charge of second-degree murder. She faces a mandatory life term.

Judge Fred Crifasi had said Thursday's hearing was a "last exit" for Cardwell before a trial. At a brief hearing Thursday, Cardwell rejected an offer to plead to a lesser charge. The state asked that the trial be delayed from Nov. 3, and Crifasi postponed it to Feb. 2. Pre-trial motions will be taken up Nov. 24.

Cardwell's boyfriend was previously convicted of second-degree murder and was sentenced to a life term

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