MI - Shylae Thomas, 9, quadriplegic, found dead in storage unit, Flint, March 2009

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Mother of 9-year-old girl who was found dead believed to be in jail

http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2009/04/mother_of_9yearold_girl_who_wa.html




Prosecutor could decide Thursday on criminal charges in death of 9-year-old quadriplegic found dead in storage unit


FLINT, Michigan -- When a social worker asked where 9-year-old Shylea Thomas was Monday, her adoptive mother claimed she was on her way to Virginia with a friend.

In fact, the small quadriplegic was lying dead in a storage unit six miles away -- wrapped in a garbage bag and stuffed in a large plastic bin filled with mothballs, her feet hanging over the side.

Investigators believe Shylea had been dead for six weeks before police found her body Wednesday morning at a Vienna Township storage facility.

http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2009/04/prosecutor_could_decide_thursd.html


RIP dear child.
 
OMG :eek: The adoptive mother is also her aunt!!!!

http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2009/04/prosecutor_could_decide_thursd.html

Her adoptive mother and aunt, Lorrie M. Thomas, 39, is in jail and could face felony murder and abuse charges as early as Thursday afternoon.

An autopsy was done Wednesday but the results have not been released.

The state Department of Human Services began to suspect something might be wrong Monday after a worker went to Thomas' house on E. Pierson Road near I-475 to check out a tip that Shylea and another child there were being neglected.

Among the allegations were the children were often dirty and that Shylea was left in her bed for long periods, according to a court hearing Wednesday.

Poor child.
 
Kudos to DCF on this one. The school should have notified them sooner, if it was the school who did notify them.
I'm grateful they didn't stop until they found her.
I don't often hear anything good about DCF, so when I do, I acknowledge their determination to find out what's really going on.
moo

ETA; It's not that unusual for quads/people with severe disablities to be in bed for long periods of time. It is unusual imo for a child to not attend school, even if a tutor is sent to the home. Children who are disabled have a right to an education. Teachers, and bus drivers are on the front line of observing whether children are being abused/neglected at home. I'm sure they do their best. Kudos to each and every teacher and bus driver out there!!
moo

It also sounds like the fathers weren't real responsible for their own children and placed a huge amount of pressure on this woman to care for all these children, including a severely disabled child. That's horrible, and even now the children are in shelter care instead of being with their fathers, grandparents, etc. Why was this woman taking care of so many children even if they were her kin?
She should have simply said it was too much for her to handle, but then, maybe she did, and people would load on the guilt instead of the compassion to intervene before it came to this.

Rest in the arms of God dear Shylea.
 
I care for my severely disabled son, who is an adult. When my three grandchildren come over for more than a few hours, I'm exhausted. It would be too much to care for three kids, plus a severely disabled person also. She was carrying too heavy a load for one person, and she should have been able to reach out for help, but I know how hard it is to get help.
I would never do what she did though. Money may have been the reason she disposed of her, instead of contacting the right people. We don't know yet if Shylea's death was natural, or homocidal.
I'm sad for all the children in that home.
With three different fathers, there should have been enough traffic in that home to notice a problem.
It's a very sad story and hurts my heart that it happened.
It was preventable. moo
 
There was a lady on Judge Joe Brown last night that "fostered" several children, including a niece. It was obvious from the things she said that she did it for the money. Her niece received Social Security and the other children who weren't related she received money for also.

Seven children is a bit much for one person, let alone one of them being handicapped.

I know this poor baby is in a better place but it makes me so angry that she wasn't treated better while she was here (and to think her crippled body was left to rot like trash).
 
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/23/michigan.child.dead/index.html


FLINT, Mich. -- The adoptive mother of a 9-year-old quadriplegic girl whose body was found in a Flint area storage unit could face charges ranging from misdemeanor moving a corpse to felony murder, prosecutors said Thursday.

Authorities will review evidence and results from an autopsy on Shylea Myza Thomas' body, Special Assistant Genesee County Prosecutor John Potbury told The Associated Press. A warrant could be issued, followed by an arraignment Thursday afternoon, he said.

Potbury described the woman as an aunt who adopted Shylea and her 11-year-old sister through the state.

Girl's Body Found In Flint

The 39-year-old aunt became the focus of the investigation earlier when she told police Thomas had gone out of town, even though the child's wheelchair was still at the aunt's home.

She was arrested Wednesday after police found Shylea's body in a black trash bag, stuffed into a plastic bin and locked in a unit at Stor & Lock in Vienna Township, about 65 miles northwest of Detroit.

Moth balls were scattered on top of the bag, apparently to mask odors from the body, Prosecutor David Leyton said in a statement.

"We believe the suspect rented the storage unit right around the time that the child was placed there," said Leyton.

"This is a very sad and tragic case that hurts all of us involved in the ongoing investigation," he said. "It appears that Shylea had a rough go in life."

Authorities have been told by the family that Shylea had been paralyzed since nearly suffocating in her crib as an infant, Potbury said.

She lived in the Flint home with several other relatives.

Leyton described conditions at the home as "absolutely filthy."

"For her to have to live like that, and then to die and be stuffed into a bag and plastic bin in a storage facility just breaks my heart," Leyton said.

The prosecutor's statement said relatives of the girl told workers with the state Human Services department that Shylea had not been seen in six weeks.

Officials notified police, who learned late Tuesday or early Wednesday that the girl was dead and her body hidden in the storage facility.

Police originally were given misinformation about Shylea after arriving at the home, Potbury said.
 
Bless her sweet little heart.

The only thing that comforts me is to know that she is in a better place.
 
This just makes me so angry that I have no words that can be written here! GB her little heart. She is in heaven now where there are no disabilities and no pain!
 
IMO, I think DP has SP in a storage place also.
I read a book that a daughter kept her mother in one in a garbage can also
and would NEVER of been caught except she failed to pay on it after years.
 
I care for my severely disabled son, who is an adult. When my three grandchildren come over for more than a few hours, I'm exhausted. It would be too much to care for three kids, plus a severely disabled person also. She was carrying too heavy a load for one person, and she should have been able to reach out for help, but I know how hard it is to get help.
I would never do what she did though. Money may have been the reason she disposed of her, instead of contacting the right people. We don't know yet if Shylea's death was natural, or homocidal.
I'm sad for all the children in that home.
With three different fathers, there should have been enough traffic in that home to notice a problem.
It's a very sad story and hurts my heart that it happened.
It was preventable. moo

:hug: yosande. Am sure your heart does hurt as you are wearing the shoes and walking the mile....I pray this little girl, if but for a moment, looked into eyes and felt a love like yours.
 
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/24/michigan.child.dead/index.html?eref=ib_topstories

Lorrie Thomas was charged with second-degree murder and child abuse in the death of Shylea Myza Thomas, said John Potbury, an assistant prosecutor with the Genesee County Prosecutor's Office in Flint, Michigan.

Thomas is also charged with tampering with evidence.

Thomas, who is the girl's biological aunt, made no immediate public statement.

Police found the girl's body this week, stuffed inside a garbage bag in a public storage facility in Vienna Township, near Flint, said Genesee County prosecutor David Leyton.

The bag was covered in mothballs "in an apparent attempt to mask odors from the dead body," Leyton's office said in a news release.

"This is a very sad and tragic case that hurts all of us involved in the ongoing investigation," Leyton said.

Shylea had not been seen in six weeks, but relatives did not report her missing until Tuesday, Leyton's office said.
 
http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2009/04/lorrie_m_thomas_39_appears_in.html

Leyton said an autopsy Wednesday discovered Shylae had bed sores so severe that her bone was sticking through her skin.

Shylae, whose name also is sometimes spelled Shylea, was found early Wednesday wrapped in a garbage bag and stuffed in a plastic bin in a Vienna Township storage unit. Officials said she weighed 33 pounds when she died.

Police said a check from the state that Thomas received to care for Shylae had been cashed April 13, weeks after her death.

Shylae lived with Thomas in her East Pierson Road home with seven other children. The other children have been removed from the home and placed in emergency foster care.
 
http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2009/04/lorrie_m_thomas_39_appears_in.html

Leyton said an autopsy Wednesday discovered Shylae had bed sores so severe that her bone was sticking through her skin.

Shylae, whose name also is sometimes spelled Shylea, was found early Wednesday wrapped in a garbage bag and stuffed in a plastic bin in a Vienna Township storage unit. Officials said she weighed 33 pounds when she died.

Police said a check from the state that Thomas received to care for Shylae had been cashed April 13, weeks after her death.

Shylae lived with Thomas in her East Pierson Road home with seven other children. The other children have been removed from the home and placed in emergency foster care.
[my bold]

"Thomas cried when she entered the courtroom today, wiping her tears on her orange jump suit."

But she didn't cry to get help for the child and wiped no tears on that check......

Lovejac.....my bags are packed, am on my way....will be your new neighbor in the State of Disbelief.
 
I"m assuming she basically let Sheylea lay there until she died. You have to be a cold hearted b**ch to do something like that. Too bad in prison this will receive all the care she needs.

JMO
 
This poor little girl "suffered" to death! I cannot understand how one human can do that to another; much less to a child who is already completely defenseless. I cannot imagine what a miserable life she must have led; in complete pain- with a bone sticking through her skin! This is another one of those cases I would like to see an automatic death penalty given to.
 

Thank you - this is so sad. It appears there's been a breakdown with the family and Shylea was the victim. The mom was certainly in no mental or physical condition to take this on her own:

"She started separating herself from our side of the family," Josette Thomas said. "I haven't seen Shylae in a year. Lorrie wouldn't let nobody see her."

If this were my family, and a defensless child were involved, I would be up all in her face. Fine - you don't care about me, you can let me see Shylea, or I'm on the phone with 911 for fear of child endangerement.

It reminds me of a sweet little girl with some of the same problems that goes to my sons school (and aftercare). She communicates with her eyes, can't move at all. But the children all love her, and we all know she loves the time, care, and the support provided her.

It takes a city, not just 1 person, to raise a special needs beautiful child. I know, you know, we all know, there are resources for disabled children. Even if it's to take the child to the park so the mother can get a break. School is another place, as is home care if needed. It seems to me, the mom just gave up and didn't want it. This mother let the child die. I hope her death is just as horrifying!

May Shylae (amongst all the horror) find some peace as an angel.

Bless,
 
I care for my severely disabled son, who is an adult. When my three grandchildren come over for more than a few hours, I'm exhausted. It would be too much to care for three kids, plus a severely disabled person also. She was carrying too heavy a load for one person, and she should have been able to reach out for help, but I know how hard it is to get help.
I would never do what she did though. Money may have been the reason she disposed of her, instead of contacting the right people. We don't know yet if Shylea's death was natural, or homocidal.
I'm sad for all the children in that home.
With three different fathers, there should have been enough traffic in that home to notice a problem.
It's a very sad story and hurts my heart that it happened.
It was preventable. moo

I truly believe there are angels here on earth, such as you, who can care for a severely disabled child. It takes a special person, with a special heart, to try to break that shell.

My 1/2 sister is severly disabled. She has many problems, and her mom treats her like a servant - it's sad (she's in her late 30's now). No physical or mental abuse, just make sure the entire house is clean while mom is in bed reading. I visited her this Spring Break and was thrilled that dad bought her 2 yorkie terriers. Dogs do have a way with special needs children/adults, and she just cherishes them. The mom on the other hand -- don't care for her much. But I know she's safe with my dad and she gives the most awesomest hugs. Anyway, I guess I'm saying there's a way to raise a special needs child, and it's not always about the disability check :( If my 1/2 sister lived with me, it would be different, but her mom says she "enjoys" doing all those chores - keeps her occupied. Could be true (I never heard her complain), but while I was there, I did a lot of stuff while she was at school to take some of the burden off. She seemed well chuffed.

Anyway, I wish there were more people like you in this world.

Hugs,
 

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