Although the Grand Jury testimony showed that Defendant Jenkins and Defendant Ehrlick admitted to detectives that
"they" were using various forms of ‘punishment” or “discipline” on Robert Manwill during the summer of 2009, the evidence presented to the Grand Jury supports the allegation that defendant Ehrlick inflicted “extreme and prolonged pain” and “extreme and prolonged acts of brutality” on victim Robert Manwill.
A family member noticed bruises on Robert and confronted Defendant Jenkins about the injuries to Robert over the July 4th weekend.
Apparently MJ was not home on the evening of July 23rd, 2009 and Robert was left alone in the care of DE. There were problems between Defendant Ehrlick and Robert that were escalating on that evening and during the course of the evening Robert ended up vomiting. Sometime during this time period a noticeable hole appeared in the sheetrock at the apartment where Defendants Jenkins and Ehrlick lived. The fact there was undigested food found in Robert’s stomach at autopsy proves Robert was alive on the morning of July 23, 2009 and forced to eat breakfast despite the fact his health was rapidly declining.
DE was not the baby boy’s biological father but after the bio dad gave up his parental rights, DE got parental rights to the child and took excellent care of him according to case workers.
The pathologist testified that the injuries on Robert’s body discovered at autopsy were consistent with an adult male using his knees with force on a child’s abdomen from one or more abdominal impacts. Although Defendant Erhlick admitted that at least on one occasion he did put his knees on Robert Manwill’s abdomen and used his weight to keep Robert from wiggling during a dead bugging punishment and that he had done so about one and a half to two weeks prior to Robert’s disappearance, Testimony about the crush injuries to Robert’s abdomen and chest related to his cause of death indicate that those injuries were very recent and had occurred within a day or two of his death.
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Other evidence which shows Robert was enduring extreme and prolonged acts of pain and extreme and prolonged acts of brutality in other ways included acts of violence which included bruising/injury to Robert through other means, hiding him in a closet to keep authorities from identifying the injuries, striking him with a board, forcing him to eat a food he hated and then punishing him for gagging or vomiting when he consumed the food, placing him “on the wall”, and other forms of extreme conduct which caused extreme and prolonged pain or extreme and prolonged acts of brutality. Evidence of these other acts was presented to the Grand Jury as well.
The Grand Jury also heard that both Defendant Ehrlick and Defendant Jenkins knew that Robert was being bruised repeatedly and had multiple bruising injuries to his back, which they both claimed occurred from dead bugging. GJ Trans. At 138. Both Ehrlick and Jenkins acknowledged, however, that dead bugging alone would not have caused these bruises. GJ Trans. At 277, 313. The Grand Jury was told that both defendants tried to attribute the bruising on Robert to what they professed was a tendency to “bruise easily.” GJ Trans. At 275, 313. Nonetheless, both clearly recognized that the extent of the bruising and injury to Robert’s back was sufficient that both defendants felt the injuries needed to be hidden from authorities and others.
The Grand Jury was also told that both defendants participated in hiding Robert Manwill in a closet at their home during the three times a week that agents from the Department of Health and Welfare were visiting their home, and that they did so to prevent disclosure of the bruises and to prevent Robert from disclosing the abuse to others. GJ Trans. At 137-138, 154, 264-265, 322-326. Testimony was also provided that on July 17, 2009, Jenkins went so far as to tell the visiting social workers that Robert was no longer living with her and that she concocted a story for the worker telling her that Robert had injured a horse and was spending the rest of the summer with his custodial father as punishment. Jenkins story was concocted to prevent the agents from continuing to inquire about Robert’s unexplained absences in her home. GJ Trans. 189-199, 322-324.
The Grand Jury testimony also shows that both defendants knew that Robert was being injured and bruised from discipline techniques they referred to as “the board” wherein Robert was struck with a piece of door molding. GJ Trans. At 134-136, 309-310, 253-255.
The length of time Robert suffered from this particular form of torture is demonstrated by the fact a family member had noticed these bruises on Robert and confronted Defendant Jenkins about the injuries to Robert over the July 4th weekend. GJ Trans. At 306-307. Likewise, autopsy results identified a deep buttocks bruise, not visible externally, which would be consistent with being struck by “the board” in the manner the defendants described. GJ Trans. at 151, 265, 308-309.
The Grand Jury transcript further shows that both defendants discussed another form of “discipline” which they referred to as “on the wall”, which Robert was physically incapable of completing, and yet another form of discipline wherein Robert was knelt down, his legs were crossed behind him, and he was leaned forward to touch the wall with his head or nose, causing pressure and pain to the front of his knees. GJ Trans. at 131-136, 256, 317-319. Likewise, the Grand Jury heard that the brutality and pain endured by Robert Manwill in his mother and Defendant Ehlrick’s custody included being forced to eat a particular food which Robert found extremely repugnant while the rest of the family ate other foods. GJ Trans. at 126-127, 133, 278, 317-319. As a result of being forced to eat this food, and his injuries, Robert was having problems with his weight and he would gag or vomit. GJ Trans. at 270, 316. The Grand Jury further heard that the gagging, vomiting, or complaining would result in further punishment and the excuse to continue to force him to eat the food he found so repulsive as punishment. They were also told that on the morning of July 24, 2009, in spite of his injuries and clear physical pain, Robert Manwill was forced by his mother and her boyfriend to consume this same food as punishment. They were also told that on the morning of July 24, 2009, in spite of his injuries and clear physical pain, Robert Manwill was forced by his mother and her boyfriend to consume this same food as punishment. GJ Trans. at 278, 333-337. This particular food was identified as being undigested in Robert’s stomach contents at autopsy. GJ Trans. at 30-31, 73.
Additionally, autopsy results presented to the Grand Jury indicated that Robert Manwill had suffered a severe head injury. There was evidence of an impact injury to Robert’s head which occurred while he was alive. GJ Trans. at 64. The head injury was caused by significant and painful force and caused internal bleeding while he was still alive. GJ Trans at 66. Like the abdominal injury which Robert endured prior to his death, the head injury he received while alive was lethal and was identified before the Grand Jury as the cause of death, along with the severe abdominal and chest injuries. The sleepiness, headache, and stumbling which Jenkins told Detectives Robert was complaining about on the morning of July 24, 2009, are consistent with having sustained this type of head injury. GJ Trans. at 65-68. Robert Manwill had been alone in the care of Defendant Ehrlick on the evening of July 23, 2009. There were problems between Defendant Ehrlick and Robert that were escalating on that evening and during the course of the evening Robert ended up vomiting. Sometime during this time period a noticeable hole appeared in the sheetrock at the apartment where Defendants Jenkins and Ehrlick lived. GJ Trans. at 140-143, 268-372, 328-334.
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