Timothy Boss
In July 2000, 10 year old Timothy Boss was beaten to death by his adoptive parents, Donald Boss Jr. and Lisa Boss. He spent the night before his death bound to a chair in the family’s basement. Timothy Boss and three other special needs children were adopted by Donald Jr. and Lisa Boss in Michigan; […]
Louisa and Swen Swanson
Jeannette Swanson, a homeschooling mother, shot and killed her children Louisa, 10, and Swen, 14, in their sleep a week after she was briefly hospitalized for depression and chronic tiredness. Her remaining two sons, aged 20 and 16, were unharmed. She was sentenced to life commitment in Montana State Hospital. Date: August 26, 2002 Location: […]
Stephen Hill and 1 Sibling
Stephen Hill was 13 years old but weighed only 55 pounds when he died—having gained only 1 pound and grown only 1 inch since he was removed from school to be homeschooled four years earlier at age 9. Stephen’s parents had kept him chained in order to deprive him of food, and he died 13 […]
Ricky Holland
Lisa Holland struck her 7 year old adopted son Ricky in the head with a hammer and didn’t seek medical help while he slowly died. Lisa and her husband Tim dumped Ricky’s body in a swamp and said he had disappeared. Police found the body six months later, and Lisa and Tim were charged in […]
Markea Berry
16-year-old Markea Berry, who was mentally disabled, weighed only 40 pounds when she was found dead in her mother’s home. Relatives reported that Markea’s mother, Ebony Berry, was abusive toward her when the family had lived in Michigan. The family left Michigan for Georgia to avoid investigation by child protective services. Ebony homeschooled Markea along […]
Matthew Degner and 4 Siblings
After 14 year old Matthew Degner died, his mother dragged his dead body outside in hopes that officials would not look inside her home and see its squalid condition—or the 200 animals, riddled with disease, she kept there in cages. Matthew’s mother had isolated him and his four siblings, telling officials that they were being […]
Ramie and Timothy Grimmer
Rachelle Dianne Grimmer shot her two children, Ramie, aged 12, and Timothy, aged 10, in the head in a state welfare office to protest being denied food stamps. Grimmer had been on and off of government programs for years, and had for a time lived with her children in a tent on a beach. Grimmer’s […]
Valerie Smelser
At age 12, Valerie Smelser was beaten to death by her mother and her mother’s boyfriend. Her emaciated body was dumped in a ditch. Valerie’s mother claimed a religious exemption from public schooling and kept the girl home. She requested an application for homeschooling but never returned it. Child abuse tips were lodged against the […]
Ame Deal
10 year old Ame Deal died of suffocation after being locked in a footlocker overnight as punishment for stealing a popsicle. Ame’s grandparents, with whom she lived, frequently locked her in the footlocker as a punishment and sometimes threw it around with her inside. Some time before her death, Ame’s aunt had thrown her in […]
Jaquan Porter
Jaquan Porter was 10 years old when he died from fatal head injuries after being slammed against a wall. His mother, Melissa Sekulski, did not seek immediate medical treatment for the boy. Sekulski had removed her obese son from public school to protect him from bullying, but went on to beat him to death less than […]
