Isaiah Torres
Maurice Isaiah Torres, age 6, who went by Isaiah, was beaten and raped to death by his parents, Mauricio Alejandro Torres and Cathy Lynn Torres. Isaiah, his twin sister, and their 8-year-old sister were homeschooled. Isaiah had been pulled from school following an abuse investigation. Isaiah had previously been treated at a hospital for chemical […]
Sarah, Chris, Rebecca, and Daniel Smith
Sarah Richardson (b. 1988, left) and her brother Chris Smith (b. 1990, second from left) were physically abused by their stepfather, TV hypnotist Martin Smith, who also subjected Sarah to systematic sexual abuse for a decade. Their mother, child services employee Lianne Smith, knew about the abuse but did nothing. After Sarah reported the abuse […]
K.B. by Robert Sanders
A 13-year-old girl known as K.B. was sexually abused by her stepfather, Robert E. Sanders. Sanders forced her to agree to a “covenant” where he assaulted her in exchange for giving her “rewards” such as being allowed to attend social events at church. The girl and her siblings were homeschooled due to the family’s religious […]
4 Children of David and ReJeana Moss
Two girls, ages 11 and 13, and a mentally disabled 17-year-old boy were imprisoned, starved, and physically and sexually abused by their adoptive parents, David V. Moss and ReJeana Moss. The Mosses also had a 9-year-old adopted son. The children were homeschooled. The children were adopted around 2004, but the abuse did not begin until […]
9 Children of James and Lucinda Haskin
Nine children, ages 3 to 17, were starved, neglected, and sexually abused by their parents, James E. Haskin Jr. and Lucinda Catherine Haskin. The Haskins claimed to be homeschooling them. According to an affidavit, the children were neglected from December 2009 to October 20, 2011. The Haskins “withheld proper food, shelter, clothing, hygiene and education.” […]
Pridine Fru
Actress and talk-show host Pridine Fru (right) was imprisoned and physically and sexually abused by her adoptive parents, Joseph (seated) and Evelyn (left) Djoumessi, from the time she was illegally adopted at age 14 until she was rescued at age 17. During this time, she was forced to live in the Djoumessis’ basement and work […]
Stacy and Jeremy Beckman
Stacy Beckman, age 10, and Jeremy Beckman, age 8, were imprisoned, starved, and physically and sexually abused by their foster parents, Shane and Judy Huxoll. The children had been pulled from school to be homeschooled, which “mostly consisted of crossword puzzles, math problems and learning how to tell time…Every wrong answer resulted in a beating […]
4 Children by Daniel Sweetman
Four children, including a 9-year-old boy, his 8-year-old sister, and a 10-year-old boy, were sexually abused by their babysitter, Daniel Sweetman, around March 1991. Sweetman was the son of Julius Schacknow, the leader of a new religious movement to which the children’s families belonged. The children in the group had been homeschooled since 1988 on […]
Amber Dawn Lee, and 10 children by Arvin Shreeve
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 […]
A.S. and L.S. by Wayne Bent
Two girls—A.S., age 16, and L.S., a.k.a. Healed Travesser (pictured), age 14—were sexually abused by Wayne Bent, a.k.a. Michael Travesser (pictured). The girls were the children of John and Elsa Sayer, who were members of the Lord Our Righteousness Church or Strong City, a new religious movement led by Bent, who claimed he was the […]
