Homeschooling’s 

Invisible Children

Vincent Nicolai

Vincent Salem Nicolai, age 7, was killed by his mother, Stephanie Adams, in a murder-suicide. Vincent was homeschooled. Adams and her husband, Dr. Charles Nicolai, married in 2009 and filed at least ten domestic incident reports over the course of their marriage. Until 2017, Vincent attended local public schools, where Adams was a “present and […]

Jeffrey Franklin

Jeffrey Franklin, age 16, who went by ‘JR’, is believed to have been murdered by his adoptive parents, Ernest Franklin II and Heather Franklin. Chenango County District Attorney Joseph McBride confirmed by phone that JR was homeschooled. Ernest Franklin was an Iraq War veteran and Heather Franklin described herself as a “stay-at-home, homeschooling mom.” JR […]

2 Children of Bruce and Deborah Leonard

Top row: Tiffanie Irwin, Traci Irwin, Joseph Irwin, Daniel Irwin Middle row: Bruce Leonard, Deborah Leonard, Sarah Ferguson Bottom row: Linda Morey, David Morey Lucas Leonard, age 19, was beaten to death by a gang that included his parents, Bruce and Deborah Leonard, his half-sister, Sarah Ferguson, and several other members of the Word of […]

Leonard Cammalleri

Leonard Joseph “Lenny” Cammalleri, b. 1983, was abducted by his father, Leonard Alfred Cammalleri, in April 1984. Cammalleri homeschooled Lenny to avoid detection, preventing him from socializing with other children and closely monitoring his movements outside the home. Cammalleri never took Lenny to a doctor. Lenny was abducted from the Stamford, Connecticut home of his […]

Shane Graham and 10 Siblings

Shane Graham, age 11, disappeared in 1999 or 2000. He had autism, Down’s Syndrome, and sickle-cell anemia. His adoptive mother, Judith Leekin, is believed to have murdered him and buried him in the yard of one of her houses, although his body has not been found. Leekin also abused 10 other adopted special needs children. Leekin adopted eleven […]

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 […]

Valerie Charlene Lucie

Eleven year old Valerie Lucie hung herself after being brutally raped in the shower by her father, Timothy Lucie. Valerie was described as a happy and outgoing girl whose homeschool social calendar was filled with soccer and choir. While the family’s pastor initially defended the father and urged the congregation not to jump to conclusions, […]