Six children—B. (b. 1988), Danny (b. 1990), Marissa (b. 1992), Tyler “Ty” (b. 1993), Jesse (b. 1995), and Caleb (b. 1996)—were imprisoned, starved, and tortured by their biological mother, Mary Rowles, and her partner Alice “Jamie” Jenkins. The children were homeschooled. Rowles gave birth to B. when she was in high school; B. and Danny were the only two of… Read more »
C.H., a 12-year-old boy, was groomed and forced to appear in pornography by Michael Alvin Krause, his homeschool teacher. Krause befriended the boy’s mother, Misty Hebert, and grandmother Nancy Hunt, claiming that he had been “a Pentecostal preacher and had helped ‘problem teens’ by home-schooling them.” Hebert pulled C.H. from school after he experienced problems and engaged Krause to be… Read more »
Anna Nicole Farmer, 12, was tortured, starved, and beaten to death by her stepfather, James Kevin Yost. Her mother, Bridget Nicole Farmer, knew about the abuse and did nothing. Anna was homeschooled and was singled out for abuse—Bridget Farmer’s other three children (ages 9, 8, and 20 mo.) were not abused. Yost kept Anna locked in her room so that… Read more »
Luis [or Louis] Moreno, who went by Franky, was 5 years old when he was shot and killed by his father, Roland Ramirez Moreno. Moreno also killed his pregnant wife, Maria Burton Moreno, and himself. Franky was homeschooled. Newspapers reported that the Morenos were a seemingly happy churchgoing family. However, Moreno had allegedly been blacklisted by the leadership of his church,… 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 »
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… Read more »
Irma and Dino Pavlis adopted two children from Russia, Alex, aged 6, and his biological sister, aged 5. Only six weeks after the adoption, the boy died in the hospital of injuries sustained from beatings he suffered at the hands of his adoptive mother. Irma said she beat Alex because the child was difficult and she lost control, but she… Read more »
Mary Corrigan, 33, was charged with child neglect after it was discovered that she locked her three children, 6, 8, and 10, naked in a bathroom for long periods of time and forced them to drink vinegar, eat hot peppers, and take cold showers as a punishment for bad language. The children were also malnourished and covered in rashes. They… Read more »
Vanessa and Ray Jackson systematically starved their four adopted sons, beat them with brooms, rulers, sticks, shoes, and belt buckles, and choked them. When they were found, Bruce, 19, weighed 45 pounds; Keith, 14, weighed 41 pounds; Tyrone, 10, weighed 28 pounds; and Michael, 9, weighed 23 pounds. Vanessa kept the kitchen locked up and the boys were so hungry… Read more »
Joshua and Luke Laney were eight and six when their mother smashed in their skulls with rocks. Deanna Laney, 39, believed God had called her to stone her sons. Laney was described by neighbors as a loving and devout homeschool mother, and was found not guilty by reason of insanity. Joshua and Luke’s younger brother Aaron suffered brain damage but… Read more »