Kendrick Lee killed: Trial starts for man accused of beating 8-year-old to death in 2021, leaving decomposing body in apartment [Video]

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The trial started Tuesday for the man accused in the 2020 murder of 8-year-old Kendrick Lee.

Prosecutors say Brian Coulter beat Kendrick to death and left the little boy’s body to decompose for a year in the family’s southwest Harris County apartment. Coulter was identified as the live-in boyfriend of the children’s mother, Gloria Williams.

Investigators say Kendrick’s brothers, ages 15, 10, and 7, were living with the skeletal remains for nearly a year. Jordan, the then-15-year-old, called 911 to report what happened on Oct. 24, 2021.

“Jordan will tell you that Brian Coulter had a history of locking Kendrick Lee in a room, limiting his access to food, and that there was a history of abuse – of this man hitting, kicking, punching Kendrick Lee,” prosecutor Celeste Byrom said during her opening statement lasting less than 10 minutes. Byrom added that all three brothers, who have not publicly shared …