A boy was beaten by his relative, Joel Ronald Lawrence Love (pictured). The boy was homeschooled. The boy was contacting his friends on social media. When Love discovered this, he “grabbed [the boy] by the throat, choked him, repeatedly hit his head against the floor, pushed him up against a fridge and hit him in the leg with a hammer.”… Read more »
A 12-year-old boy was starved, imprisoned, and tortured by his mother, Brandy Kay Jaynes (pictured). The boy’s father, Russell Orin Jaynes, allegedly did not know about the abuse because he was not often at home and was barred by his wife from seeing the boy. The boy’s twin sister and a younger sibling attended school and were not reported to… Read more »
Amber Dawn Lee (b. 1971) is one of at least 10 children who were sexually abused by Arvin Shreeve, the leader of a polygamist new religious movement called the Zion Society. Like the other children in the group, Amber was homeschooled, which she states “consisted solely of singing, scripture, and penmanship”. The abuse came to light when police raided the… Read more »
Desirae (b. 1979, right), Deondra (b. 1980, center), and Melody (b. 1984, left) Brown were sexually abused by their father, Keith Scott Brown, who was also their business manager. The girls were part of the piano chamber ensemble The 5 Browns and were homeschooled, primarily by their father, while their mother Lisa was in charge of their musical training. The… Read more »
In 1991, Melissa Gooding kidnapped her 2-year-old daughter, Lisa Gooding. Melissa’s parents accompanied the mother and daughter, and Lisa grew up in the company of her mother and grandparents. The family adopted assumed names and moved every few years (they lived in Illinois, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Utah before settling in Texas). Lisa was homeschooled and was never left alone… Read more »
14-year-old Elizabeth Smart was abducted from her bedroom in Salt Lake City on June 5, 2002. Elizabeth was held captive by Brian David Mitchell, who considered himself a prophet, and his wife Wanda Ileen Barzee. Mitchell threatened, bound, and raped Elizabeth daily, treating her as his second wife and sex slave. The three traveled from place to place. “He told… Read more »
Alisa and Andrew, residents of Utah and the parents of four children (known in court documents as A.S., C.S., L.S., and J.S.) divorced in 2008. Alisa was granted sole custody. After a substantiated child welfare referral regarding child neglect in February 2009, a voluntary services case was opened, but Alisa was uncooperative and moved to Montana. In May, it was… Read more »
