Four people are facing charges in the death of a 4 year old Missouri girl, and the sheriff says the beatings were tied to what appeared to be a religious episode in which adults believed they were removing a demon.
Benton County Sheriff Eric Knox said the girl’s parents, Mary, 29, and James, were charged with endangering the welfare of a child resulting in death, and are being held without bond. Mary also faces a first degree domestic assault charge, and James faces a first degree child endangerment charge resulting in serious physical injury. Court records show neither has an attorney. Neighbors Ethan, 35, and Kourtney, 21, are charged with second degree murder and other offenses, are also jailed without bond, and had no attorneys listed. Ethan is not related to the girl’s family. All charges are allegations until proven in court.
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies were called to a rural home near Cole Camp around 1 a.m. on December 20 and found the girl dead, wrapped in a blanket on a bedroom floor. In a probable cause statement, Sgt. Chris Wilson wrote that she had severe purple bruising and ruptured blisters. Knox said the sheriff’s office believes she was severely beaten and dunked in an icy pond. The parents were also beaten, and a 2 year old child was hurt, while an infant son was apparently unharmed. The surviving children were placed in protective custody.
The statement says James told investigators the beatings happened over several days, that he and his wife witnessed them, and that they were threatened with being beaten or shot if they interfered. He said the family was told Mary had a demon inside her. Ethan told police that he and Kourtney used a leather belt on the girl on December 19 and that she was taken to a pond behind the home. It was not clear when she died, and an autopsy will determine the cause of death.
Knox said he had received many messages asking whether this was the work of a cult, and that the investigation so far indicates it was an isolated incident and not a cult. He said the suspects and the family belonged to the same church, which he declined to name, and that the church does not condone the actions. Further charges may be sought by Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Rod Richardson as the investigation continues.
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