'All I do is cry': NC mother mourns death of her daughter, Allisha Watts

Why was Watts killed and dumped near a cemetery? Why is Watts’ boyfriend, James Dunmore, charged in her murder?

“All I do is cry all the time,” Franklin said. “That is a tear. I can’t dry up.”

Franklin’s home in Southern Pines is surrounded by pictures of her late daughter. She also looks after Watts’ dog, Midnight.

“He comforts me,” Franklin said.

Franklin said she thinks about her daughter murdered and left for dead.

“I think about how my baby was laying near a graveyard,” Franklin said.

Authorities discovered Watts’ body on Aug. 24, 2023, in a rural area near Norman. Dunmore was arrested the same day and charged with murder, according to the Moore County Sheriff’s Office.

“She wouldn’t let me meet him [Dunmore],” Franklin said of her late daughter.

Franklin never met Dunmore. The two had been dating almost a year before Watts disappeared in July 2023 from his Charlotte home.

“She told me she was going to a concert,” Franklin said.

Franklin said she never heard from her daughter again.

“I felt it in my heart that something was wrong,” Franklin said.

Franklin has a heart condition and is unable to attend the court proceedings. She relies on family and friends to keep her updated.

“He needs to be convicted,” Franklin said of Dunmore.

In late January, a Montgomery County judge ordered the state to expedite giving evidence to the defense, ordering them to share materials within 45 days, calling the wait "negligent or intentional."

The defense even requested Dunmore's $1 million bond be reconsidered if evidence is not brought forward soon by investigators.

“They need to do something,” Franklin said. “They need to do their jobs.”

Franklin said it’s a slow process for answers.

“I dont want the world to forget my baby,” Franklin said of her late daughter. “She was wonderful.”

Watts’ family is still waiting to find out the manner of her death. An autopsy has not been returned.

Dunmore is due back in court in March.