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Who is Kelsi Cote? North Adams, MA woman’s murder trial on Kevin Reddington’s task list after Lindsay Clancy case
Kelsie Cote, accused of murdering her grandmother in 2022, is now on defense attorney Kevin Reddington’s docket.
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Kelsie Cote, a North Adams, Massachusetts, woman accused of killing her grandmother in 2022, is set to become the next major case on defense attorney Kevin Reddington’s docket after his work representing Lindsay Clancy, Berkshire Eagle reported. Cote’s case has already faced multiple delays, including one linked to Reddington’s involvement in the closely watched Duxbury murder trial.
Cote, now 30, is charged with murdering her 74-year-old grandmother, Doris Cote, at the older woman’s North Adams home in November 2022. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The case dates back to Oct. 31, 2022, when prosecutors allege Cote attacked her grandmother. Doris Cote was found dead inside her Church Street home on Nov. 1, 2022, after a relative called 911.
Deep Dive
According to prosecutors, investigators determined that the death involved both sharp- and blunt-force injuries. They allege Cote attacked her grandmother with an open pair of scissors and struck her with a paperweight.
Cote was arrested on November 4, 2022, after investigators from the North Adams Police Department and the Massachusetts State Police developed probable cause in the case. Initial charges included murder, assault with intent to murder and destruction of evidence.
Prosecutors allege $1 million inheritance motive
The prosecution has also alleged that money played a role in the killing.
According to the case allegations reported by the Berkshire Eagle, Cote allegedly persuaded her grandmother to make her the beneficiary of an estate valued at about $1 million before Doris Cote was killed. Prosecutors have alleged that Cote was struggling with drug addiction and killed her grandmother to support that addiction.
Investigators have also alleged that Cote attempted to make the death look like an accident. Prosecutors say she dragged her grandmother through the house in an effort to make it appear that Doris Cote had fallen down the stairs.
Those allegations have not been proven in court. Cote has maintained her not-guilty plea.
The circumstances surrounding the death were already being investigated when police arrested Cote days after Doris Cote was found dead. At the time, authorities said investigators had established probable cause that Cote had killed her grandmother and attempted to destroy evidence.
Kevin Reddington handling Cote’s case
Cote’s defense attorney is Kevin Reddington, the Brockton-based lawyer who has also been representing Lindsay Clancy in the highly publicized case involving the deaths of Clancy’s three children.
Reddington's work on Clancy’s case has affected the timetable of the Cote proceedings. The latest delay involves a planned hearing concerning the suppression of evidence.
Reddington requested a continuance because of his ongoing work on Clancy’s case. A judge granted the request, and Cote’s suppression hearing has been rescheduled for Sept. 28 in Berkshire Superior Court, according to court documents cited by the Berkshire Eagle.
The hearing has been postponed before. A previous delay in July 2025 was attributed to another trial Reddington was handling, while a January hearing was postponed because of a snowstorm.
Despite the repeated scheduling changes, a motion to suppress evidence had not yet been filed in Cote’s case at the time of the Berkshire Eagle’s report, leaving unclear exactly what evidence the defense intends to challenge.
Cote trial date has not been set
Cote's case remains in the pretrial stage, and no trial date has been set.
The September 28 suppression hearing could therefore become an important next step in determining what evidence prosecutors will be permitted to use if the case proceeds to trial.
For now, Cote's case represents a significant shift in Reddington's courtroom workload after the Clancy proceedings. The North Adams murder case has remained pending for nearly four years, with the prosecution's allegations centering on the death of Doris Cote and an alleged attempt to obtain her inheritance.
Cote remains presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
