Lindsay Tornambe’s family moved from Pennsylvania to Minnesota when she was 11 to be closer to the ministry of pastor Victor A. Barnard. Tornambe had already been homeschooled for some time, and she first met Barnard when she was 9. In 2000, when Tornambe was 13, Barnard announced before the congregation that she had been chosen to be “sacrificed to God.”… Read more »
Medical personnel responding to an emergency call in early January, 2007, found an emaciated 11-year-old girl. Some reports indicate that the girl weighed under 30 pounds. The girl was taken to the hospital and then sent to live with her grandparents in South Carolina. Medical authorities reported that she will suffer permanent developmental disabilities as the result of severe long-term malnutrition…. Read more »
13-year-old Jaelen Edge and his sister, 9-year-old Faith Edge, were found dead in a Santa Ana, California, hotel room the day before their mother, Marilyn Edge, was to turn over custody of the two children to their father, Mark Edge. Around a week earlier, a judge had settled the couple’s long custody dispute. Rather than relinquish custody of her children… Read more »
Wesley Snyder shot his wife, Ruth, and his three daughters, Holly, 12, Kyla, 10, and Corrie, 8, before turning his gun on himself. The family was found dead by Ruth’s mother, who lived in a mobile home 100 yards away from the family’s mobile home. The family ran a ranch and homeschooled. Neighbors described Wesley as a polite man who… Read more »
12-year-old Laree Slack died from internal bleeding after being beaten with rubberized electrical cable by her parents, Larry and Constance Slack. Larry and Constance were devout Jehovah’s Witnesses who homeschooled their six children and followed interpretations of Biblical discipline that included whippings. The incident that led to Laree’s death, as well as the severe beating of her 8-year-old brother, began… Read more »
8-year-old Josef Smith was found dead when paramedics responded to a call from his home. Medical examiners concluded that the boy died of “acute and chronic” abuse. The boy’s parents, Joseph and Sonya Smith, were members of Remnant Fellowship Church, and followed discipline methods that included beating children with twelve-inch glue sticks and locking children in closets. The defense argued that… Read more »
Neil Beagley died of an undiagnosed and untreated urinary tract blockage. His parents, Jeffrey and Marci Beagley, attended Oregon City’s Followers of Christ church and practiced faith healing. Neil was homeschooled after the third grade, associated mainly with family and church friends, and was described as an independent, active child who enjoyed being homeschooled. Jeffrey and Marci Beagley were sentenced to 16 months… Read more »
11-year-old Tyler Raines was found dead in his home, covered with bruises and malnourished. Prosecutors say he was tortured to death, and have charged Tommy and Amanda Raines, the boy’s father and stepmother, with capital murder and felenous child abuse and neglect. While the couple’s other children attended school and were frequently seen playing outside, Tyler was homeschooled and was… Read more »
On December 25, 2005, Raul and Cathy Sarinana stomped, kicked, and tortured their 11-year-old nephew, Ricky Morales, resulting in his death. Police found the body of Ricky’s 13-year-old brother, Conrad Morales, encased in concrete in a trashcan outside the home. Raul admitted to causing his death as well. In 2004, with their mother in and out of jail on various… Read more »
Minnet (age 9) and Jasmine (age 7) Bowman were murdered in 2006 by their adoptive mother, Renee Bowman, their bodies stored in her basement freezer. The murders were discovered two years later when their then-7-year-old sister jumped out of a second-story window to escape imprisonment in her room. She was found by authorities with open sores and lesions on her… Read more »
