10 year old Molly Holt died in a house fire while her parents and two siblings escaped. When firefighters found her charred body under debris, they found that she had been chained to her bed by her ankles. Molly’s mother, Teresa Dick, was convicted of manslaughter and false imprisonment. Molly’s father, Lloyd Lee Holt, denied knowing that his daughter was chained and said that he had heard her screaming and had tried to get to her but was prevented by the smoke. Teresa claimed that Molly was chained in bed at night because she threatened to hurt her siblings while they slept, and that Molly had tried to harm her siblings in the past. Teresa said she had tried drugging the child with sleeping medicine but that had proven ineffective. When questioned, Teresa admitted that she had never been advised to restrain her child in this way by a professional counselor or educator. Molly’s former special education teacher testified that Molly had behavioral problems and was prone to outbursts of anger, and that she had urged Molly’s parents to have her tested and to look into professional help for her, but that they had refused. Molly had not attended school since kindergarten; instead, her parents were homeschooling her.
Date: November 9, 2003
Location: Johnson County, Arkansas
| Documents: | Date: |
| Parents charged after girl chained to bed dies in fire | 2003-11-12 |
| Mother of child killed when chained to bed convicted | 2003-03-30 |
| Dick v. State | 2005-11-17 |
| Father denies knowing daughter was in chains | 2006-01-27 |
| Girl chained to bed dies in fire | 2009-02-11 |
