Seven children, ages 15 to 3, were starved, imprisoned, and physically and sexually abused by their adoptive mother, Machelle Hobson (pictured left). The children were homeschooled. Hobson’s four adult biological children were not reported to be abused; her sons Logan and Ryan Hackney (pictured center and right) knew about the abuse but did nothing to stop it. The children were… Read more »
Two boys—C.H., b. 2003; and J.H., b. 2005—were beaten and starved by their parents, James and Tina Harbert (pictured). The boys were homeschooled. The Harberts’ daughter was not reported to be abused. James Harbert used a 2×4, a dog leash, and his fists to beat the boys multiple times a week for as long as they could remember. The injuries… Read more »
Sanaa Cunningham (pictured right with her siblings), age 7, died as a result of abuse and neglect by her father, Germayne Cunningham, and her stepmother Lisa Cunningham. Sanaa was homeschooled. Sanaa’s biological parents, Germayne Cunningham and Sylvia Norwood, married in 2007. Cunningham was a police detective. Their first daughter X. was born in 2007 and Sanaa was born in December… Read more »
Olivia Farrell (pictured), b. around 2001, was beaten and imprisoned by her adoptive parents, Neil and Janet Farrell. Olivia was homeschooled. Olivia’s three older sisters, who were also adopted, were not reported to be abused. The Farrells began caring for Olivia when she was 5 months old. Janet Farrell had previously been a certified teacher and homeschooled Olivia K-12. The… Read more »
Two children, a 14-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl, were imprisoned, starved, and beaten by their adoptive parents, Patrick and Angel Henderson (pictured). The children were homeschooled. Their siblings, a 13-year-old and a 6-year-old, were not reported to be similarly abused. From 2007 to 2019, the Hendersons “have been investigated for child abuse or neglect 18 times…, though only a… Read more »
A 15-year-old girl was imprisoned, tortured, and starved by her father, Kevin M. Boon (pictured left), and her stepmother Felicia Boon (pictured right). The Boons also enlisted the girl’s step-siblings, ages 15, 14, and 12, in the torture. Four additional younger children were not reported to be abused. The girl was homeschooled. The girl was pulled from school in November… Read more »
Charlie*, age 12, was neglected by his mother. Charlie was homeschooled. Charlie was born in 2003 to a white mother and a First Nations father. Charlie began showing signs of autism around age three, shortly before his parents separated, although he was not diagnosed until age six. Charlie and his older brother stayed with their mother after the separation. Child… Read more »
Three children—a 19-year-old girl, A.; a 9-year-old girl, B.; and a 7-year-old boy, C.*—were physically and sexually abused by their parents, Arthur and Jenny Peterman. The two youngest children were homeschooled. Arthur Peterman began sexually abusing A. daily when she was four years old. He also regularly sexually abused B., who told police “it happened because he thought she was… Read more »
A 17-year-old boy was starved and medically neglected by his parents, David and Vanessa Hall (pictured). The boy was homeschooled. The boy was blind and autistic. He attended special education at age 5 when the family lived in Georgia, but was then pulled from school to be homeschooled. After the family moved to Colorado around 2008, the boy did not… Read more »
A 13-year-old boy was starved and imprisoned by his mother, Dannielle Martin (left), his stepfather, Joshua Martin (right), and his grandmother, Vickie Higginbotham (center). The boy’s half-siblings—a 12-year-old girl and a 5-year-old boy—were not reported to be abused. The children were homeschooled and had little contact with mandated reporters. The abuse began at least as early as 2016, when Higginbotham… Read more »