Parents Tie Son Up Naked In Basement For Days For “Stealing” Food

Parents Tie Son Up Naked In Basement For Days For “Stealing” Food

Introduction

Judah Marshall Morgan was born on June 17th, 2017, in La Porte, Indiana. He was a sweet four-year-old boy with big brown eyes, beautiful curly blonde hair, and a bright smile. Judah was a gift to everyone who met him, and he was loved by so many people. His foster family described him as a happy, beautiful, and energetic little boy who was also bright and funny.

He liked to eat fruit and popcorn while watching movies with his foster family, and he loved playing with his foster siblings. From a young age, Judah showed signs of high intelligence. At just 18 months, he knew his rights from his lefts and was fully potty trained by his second birthday. Judah loved to play dress-up and would try on different hats and pose for pictures.

The family dogs, Thor and Willow, were a big part of Judah’s life, and he loved taking them for walks in the park and splashing in puddles. He also loved riding his red tricycle, singing, and watching Paw Patrol, PJ Masks, Garfield, The Magic School Bus, and the Disney movie Cars. His favorite character was Lightning McQueen.

Early Life and Foster Care

Judah’s biological parents were Mary Yoder and Alan Morgan, and he had four siblings. Judah unfortunately had a very rocky start in life. Both of his birth parents had severe mental health issues. After Judah was born, the hospital ran tests that showed high levels of THC in his system. As of the date of this recording, weed is still illegal in Indiana.

Because of this, he was deemed a child in need of services and was made a ward of the Indiana Department of Child Services (DCS). Mary and Alan were not even allowed to leave the hospital with their newborn son as DCS was so concerned for the infant’s safety. However, at four months old, Judah was put in foster care and placed with his second cousin Gina Hullett, her husband Phil, and their three biological children.

Gina and Phil considered Judah their own child. The little boy would call them mommy and daddy, and they would call him Bubba. The Hullett family were desperate to adopt Judah, but DCS would always string them along and make false promises.

Alan and Mary were already known to DCS years before Judah was born. The couple had been reported multiple times for child abuse and neglect concerning Judah’s older brother, Liam, who was three years old when Judah was born. An investigation was launched, and Liam was taken away and placed in the care of his grandmother.

Official documents labeled Alan a hothead and noted both of the couple’s significant drug and mental health issues. Documents also showed that in 2012, Alan had been charged with domestic violence, battery, and strangulation in the presence of a child. Charges detailed that he showed extreme verbal, emotional, and physical maltreatment towards his partner Mary. However, the charges were dropped in 2014 because Alan had completed a batterer’s program.

Strangulation in domestic violence cases is a huge red flag and is known to be a predictor of future domestic homicides. But despite this red flag, DCS never sought or obtained a psychological assessment of Alan at any time.

Alan’s Social Media and Family Dynamics

After losing custody of Liam and Judah, Mary gave birth to two more children named Micah and Dexter. Micah was born in October of 2019, and Dexter was born in September of 2020. After Micah was born, Alan started making posts about fatherhood on Facebook. In early October of 2019, he reposted the following poem:

“Before I was a dad, I never tripped over toys or forgot the words to a lullabi. I didn’t worry whether or not my plants were poisonous. I never thought about immunizations. Before I was a dad, I had never been puked on, pooped on, chewed on, peed on. I had complete control of my mind and thoughts. Before I was a dad, I never held down a screaming child so doctors can give shots. I never looked into teary eyes and cried with them. I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin. I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep. Before I was a dad, I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn’t want to put her down. I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn’t stop the hurt. I never knew something so small could affect my life so much. I never knew I could love someone so much. I never knew I would love being a dad so much. Before I was a dad, I didn’t know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.”

On October 17th of 2020, Alan shared the following quote: “Learning to be calm when you’re disrespected is a superpower.” Two days later, he reposted a post reading: “Your shitty childhood isn’t an excuse to be a shitty person. Your shitty luck with relationships isn’t an excuse to be a shitty person. Your shitty experiences aren’t an excuse to be a person. We all have our [cross] to deal with and you can either let it define you or grow from it.”

Right before Dexter was born, Alan made a post about the seven rules of life: let it go, ignore them, give it time, don’t compare, stay calm, it’s on you, and finally, smile. As you’ll soon find out later in this episode, Alan should have followed his own rules.

On November 2nd of 2020, he reposted a post by Dad Talk Today which read:

“If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days. But the family and friends we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives. And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than to our family. Some things are more important.”

On November 15th of 2020, Alan reposted an image of a father sheltering his child from the cold by hugging them, with the caption reading: “A father’s love is no less than a mother’s.” Once again, as you’ll soon find out, Alan should have taken his own advice.

Supervised Visits and Ignored Warnings

In July of 2020, Alan and Mary were granted supervised home visits with their sons, Judah and Liam. Judah hated these visits and would cry and beg not to go. Gina would have to look away and hide her tears, knowing she had no choice but to send him to his biological parents’ house.

After just a few visits, Judah started to come home and tell his foster family about what was happening. He said he had seen Alan kick Liam down the stairs and that Alan hurt him as well. Gina and Phil reported this to DCS, who failed to make any kind of investigation whatsoever.

In 2019, DCS informed Gina that they were filing a termination of Alan and Mary’s parental rights so Judah could stay with his foster family permanently, but nothing ever came of it. In 2020, they told her the same again, but still nothing ever came of it. To this day, Gina is still waiting for an explanation.

On January 12th of 2021, Alan shared a quote on Facebook that read: “Sometimes you got to starve so the family can eat.” After that, he stopped making posts about fatherhood and the love he felt for his kids. On February 13th of 2021, he reposted the quote, “Learning to be calm when you’re disrespected is a superpower,” and wrote the caption, “But I do it every day.”

On March 30th, 2021, Alan made a post that read: “Tables they turn, but was it worth what it costs you?” That was one of the last posts he made on social media.

The Fatal Trial Home Visit

In April of 2021, DCS granted Alan and Mary a trial home visit with their sons, Judah and Liam. DCS removed Judah from the foster family who had raised him since he was a few months old and placed him in the unsupervised care of his biological parents at their family home located at 3184 East 875 South in Hamlet, Indiana.

DCS was fully aware of the risk Alan and Mary posed to their children, but turned a blind eye as they wanted to close Judah’s case, which they had failed to obtain safe permanency for in 2019 and 2020. Information was cherry-picked to support DCS’s plan to close the case, and DCS never carried out any assessments of Judah’s interactions with Alan and Mary, nor did they require the couple to take a drug test.

DCS even lowered their usual safety standards just so they could close Judah’s case. For example, they lowered their standards from “don’t use or consume any illegal substances” to “don’t use illegal substances in the presence of the child.”

Gina and Phil were devastated that Judah had been taken away from them. They both knew their foster son was being placed in a dangerous situation and pleaded with DCS to reconsider, but they did not listen or care. On the day of the move, Judah wrapped his arms and legs around his foster mom and begged her not to leave him.

As Gina was dropping him off at his biological parents’ home, Judah nuzzled his face into her neck and whispered, “Mommy, please take me home.” She told him that she loved him, sat him down, and turned away towards the door, hoping the boy wouldn’t see that she was upset. She said that it was the last time she saw him alive.

Alan and Mary cut off all contact between Gina and Judah. They refused to let him visit his foster family or receive letters from them. Judah did not adjust well to his new home. He hardly knew his biological parents or siblings. At four years old, Judah was fully potty trained and had been since the age of two. However, he started having accidents once he was sent to live with his biological parents.

The Final Hours

At roughly 3:00 p.m. on October 9th, 2021, Mary went into labor, and her friend Morgan Falton drove her to the hospital. The baby was born in the early hours of October 10th. That same day, Liam celebrated his 7th birthday. Family and friends attended the party, but Judah was nowhere to be seen. When questioned about Judah’s whereabouts, Alan claimed he was simply playing at a friend’s house.

At approximately 1:30 a.m. on October 11th, Alan called Mary in the hospital. Mary said that Alan was freaking out during this call and kept repeating, “I don’t know what to do.” She asked what was wrong. Alan explained that Judah’s temperature was low. He was unconscious with a very faint heartbeat. He said he had tried CPR on him for the past hour to try to get his temperature back up, but nothing was working.

Mary told Alan that he should call 911, but he refused, saying he did not want to go to prison. Mary replied that she loved him, but if something was wrong with one of the children, she was going to call 911. Alan then started cursing Mary out and shouted at her for being the reason he would end up in prison.

After ending the call with Alan at approximately 2:23 a.m., Mary began texting Alan’s brother, Jesse Morgan. She said he needed to go to the house as there was a serious emergency happening. At 2:35 a.m., Mary tried to call Jesse via Facebook Messenger, but he didn’t pick up. Moments later, she sent another text that read:

“I mean, I kind of hate him right now. I mean, I have every right to, I guess, but I still don’t want him to remove himself from the earth. You know, I don’t need two people gone in one day.”

As Jesse was not answering his phone, Mary turned to her friend Morgan and asked her to call 911. At 2:45 a.m., the La Porte County 911 dispatch center received a phone call from Morgan informing them that Mary’s four-year-old son was unconscious and not breathing.

Police Response and Horrific Discovery

At 2:48 a.m., Deputy Michael Sweep was dispatched to this call at 3184 East 875 South in Hamlet, Indiana. Mary called 911 again at 2:53 a.m., explaining that Alan had lost his temper and hurt their son. She also said that Alan might have run away from the house and that there were three other children in the home.

While Deputy Sweep was en route, dispatch advised him the child he was looking for had been battered by his father and that there were other children in the home. When Deputy Sweep arrived at the house at 2:58 a.m., nobody answered the front door and there were no vehicles parked in the driveway. Another officer, Deputy Austin Wells, arrived at the scene at 2:59 a.m.

They realized the door was unlocked and entered the home, announcing their presence and identifying themselves as police. The horrific living conditions of the home were hard for the officers to ignore. The police files noted the exterior of the residence was observed to be riddled with garbage. The interior of the residence was in disarray with clothing, garbage, rotting food, and animal fecal matter strewn about. A strong, pungent odor of urine and rotting food permeated the senses while inside the residence.

These conditions were known to DCS, who even photographed the terrible conditions during one of Alan and Mary’s supervised visits. Gina also made multiple reports to the local health department about the living conditions. The reports were referred to DCS, but Judah’s caseworker informed her the house met minimum standards.

Deputy Wells then entered a child’s bedroom and found Judah lying on the bed, completely nude and wrapped in a blanket. His wrists and mouth were bound with duct tape. The deputy removed the blanket and saw that Judah was covered in bruises and bloody cuts. The injuries were most prevalent on his face and head. He was also clearly malnourished.

Deputy Wells checked Judah’s pulse and was able to find one, noting the boy was cold to the touch. Three other children were then discovered. They appeared unharmed but were taken away in an ambulance as a precaution.

More officers were called to the scene. Crime scene tape was set up, and the criminal investigative division was contacted. As officers were exploring the house, they came across a padlocked refrigerator in the kitchen. They also found a bullmastiff locked in a tiny crate filled with feces and urine. The dog was emaciated, and its fur was badly matted and dirty.

Officers then made their way down to the basement stairs. The basement was cold and pitch black, and the lights didn’t work. As they scanned the area with a flashlight, they discovered several pieces of silver and camouflage duct tape scattered across the floor. One of the pieces was taped to a child’s toilet, which was full of urine. One was stuck to a toddler-sized black sock, and another was stuck to the wall.

A blanket was also lying on the floor next to a pair of toddler sweatpants, both of which smelled strongly of urine. There were also two small pipes and a coaxial cable near the blanket, sweatpants, and toilet.

The Investigation and Confessions

Alan and Mary were tracked down by 7:00 a.m. that same morning and taken into custody at the La Porte County Jail.

When Mary was questioned by detectives, she explained that Alan was horrible towards her and all of the children, but targeted Judah the most. She stated that Alan would take Judah down to the basement to punish him for having potty training accidents or taking food from the fridge without his permission. Alan would then tie Judah up with duct tape and intentionally cut off electricity to the basement as a scare tactic.

On top of that, Alan would withhold food and water from Judah, which caused him to become very sick and malnourished. Judah was also sent down to the basement completely naked. This was done to make sure he was as cold and vulnerable as possible. She admitted to punishing Judah the exact same way when Alan was at work—she had a hand in this, too. She also said he was punished in the basement at least three times per week, sometimes for days at a time. When Alan thought Judah had been punished enough, he would be allowed back up to join the rest of the family.

Mary told detectives that if Judah refused to go down to the basement, Alan would grab him by the neck and drag him down there. She also claimed that she never physically harmed Judah herself and would intervene if she thought Alan was taking it too far, or so she said.

However, when detectives interviewed Judah’s seven-year-old brother, Liam, he said he witnessed his mom forcibly take Judah down to the basement multiple times, even when Alan was not home. There were times when Liam heard his mom and dad screaming at Judah and heard hitting noises coming from the basement. Liam also saw Alan beating Judah with his hands and tying his wrists together with duct tape—whose hands were typically tied behind his back when he was in the basement, and his mouth was duct-taped shut to stop others from hearing him cry.

At the end of her police interview, Mary broke down in tears and asked the detective if they could give her a hug. She said she was sad because she hadn’t seen her kids for a long time and she had been questioned for hours. The detective declined to hug her, but said they would be back to take her to the hospital to be with her baby and her friend Morgan.

Before leaving the police station, Mary phoned her grandmother to tell her what had happened. She began the call by saying: “I take it my mom didn’t tell you, did she? Judah’s gone.” When asked how he died, Mary said that Alan had accidentally taken things way too far and hurt him.

Surveillance Evidence and Autopsy

Investigators obtained surveillance footage from inside the home to build their case against Alan. Footage showed that on October 7th, 2021, just four days before Judah was found dead, Alan had punched Judah at least 13 times before picking him up by his neck and dropping him on the floor. Cameras also recorded Alan punching Judah at least 15 times on October 8th. There was no footage of Judah the next day as he was being held in the basement. He would remain there until Alan realized his son was unconscious on the 11th.

Judah’s tiny, lifeless body was examined by forensic pathologist Dr. John Fesco. The autopsy report gave the cause of death as blunt force trauma to the head, which had caused massive bleeding in the brain. Dr. Fesco noted that Judah’s injuries were one of the worst cases of blunt force trauma he had ever seen in his 28-year career.

Legal Sentences and Aftermath

Alan was charged with murder, battery against a child, neglect, and animal cruelty. He initially pled not guilty, claiming that Judah had died choking on a sandwich. However, Alan changed his plea to guilty at the very last moment after prosecutors offered a plea deal that would make sure he didn’t receive a life without parole sentence. The plea deal also dropped the charges of neglect and animal cruelty against Alan.

On November 29th, 2022, La Porte County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Alevizos sentenced Alan to 70 years in prison. During the hearing, Alan refused to provide a statement of remorse two times. Alan appealed his murder conviction in 2023, claiming the trial court misused its discretion and that his sentence was inappropriate. The Indiana Court of Appeals denied the appeal in July of 2023. While Alan was sentenced to 70 years total, he could get out of prison when he is 80 years old due to sentencing requirements and good time credit.

Gina spoke with a journalist after Alan’s trial. She said she was pleased with the sentencing as she thought he would only get 45 years. Judah’s foster sister also said the sentencing gave her a little bit of closure.

Now, you may be thinking that 70 years is a pretty long time to serve, but Indiana has something called credit time laws. These laws allow for each day served with good behavior to be rewarded with one day off your sentence. So even for a class A crime, you can get out in half the time if you behave yourself in prison. This means that Alan could serve just 35 years.

In August of 2023, Mary pled guilty to neglect of a dependent resulting in death, neglect of a dependent with cruel confinement, cruelty to an animal, failure to make a report, two additional neglect counts, and one count of domestic battery to a person less than 14 years old. She accepted a plea agreement with prosecutors and confessed to beating Judah and her other son, Liam. She also admitted that she failed to intervene or contact authorities over Alan, who frequently subjected Judah to cruel, torturous punishments.

On January 5th, 2024, the La Porte County Circuit Court judge sentenced Mary to 42 years in prison. These laws about half time would apply to Mary, too. During the hearing, Mary told the court that she regretted her actions and that she missed her sweet boy. The judge reportedly responded by grabbing a photo of Judah’s autopsy, saying, “Look at him. Unbelievable.”

Gina read the following victim impact statement during Mary’s trial:

“You knew he loved us and we loved him, and you hated that. We were his family. I have more hatred towards you because you could have saved him. How many times did I reach out to you and you blatantly ignored me?”

Mary is currently incarcerated at the La Porte County Jail. After Judah died and Alan and Mary were arrested, Liam, Micah, and Dexter were all placed in the care of family members. The baby that Mary gave birth to on October 9th was also put up for adoption.

Accountability, DCS Reform, and Judah’s Law

Gina Hullett also called for a criminal investigation into DCS’s handling of Judah’s case. She accused the agency of multiple failures, including ignoring troubling signs of child abuse and neglect, and said the people who handled her foster son’s case deserve to be prosecuted for his death.

Three DCS employees handling Judah’s case—Michelle Stoers, Michelle Goel, and Gene Dresen—were all accused of ignoring the risks of placing him back in the care of his parents. Gina filed a lawsuit against DCS in October of 2023. The suit described the behavior of the three employees as reckless, a deliberate indifference, and an intentional disregard of their duties.

According to reports, Gene Dresen was a family case manager employed by DCS at the time of Judah’s death. Meanwhile, Michelle Stoers was a family case manager supervisor, while Michelle Goel was the director of the La Porte County DCS. The lawsuit alleged their actions emboldened and encouraged Alan Morgan and Mary Yoder to neglect, torture, and beat Judah Morgan to death in 2021.

Judah Morgan is sadly not the only child to be failed by DCS in Indiana in recent history. In 2022, 61 children in Indiana died from child abuse and neglect, according to DCS’s latest annual child fatality report. A deeper review of the report reveals that in 38 deaths (62% of the fatalities), DCS had been aware of prior allegations of child abuse or neglect involving the children or their caregivers. Three years after Judah’s death, five-year-old Kinsley Welty was locked in a squalid closet for months before dying of malnutrition on April 9th, 2024. Just three weeks after that, another child died: 10-year-old Dakota Levi Stevens died while in the care of a foster parent. DCS had significant involvement with both children and their families.

In the three years following Judah’s death, DCS has failed to conduct any internal investigation concerning its failures. Instead, they have been actively trying to get the lawsuit dismissed, arguing that Gina does not have standing to sue because she is not Judah’s parent or legal guardian. In the federal case against the DCS staffers, the agency’s attorneys argued that as public employees, they are entitled to qualified immunity shielding them from liability.

Gina’s attorney, Charles Rice, wrote an email to DCS suggesting that an independent investigation should be conducted by the Indiana State Inspector General or by a law enforcement agency. In the email, he wrote:

“If DCS continues to condone the individual and collective wrongdoing which led to Judah’s death, more children will suffer and die. The recent deaths of other children in the DCS system highlight the need for DCS to immediately reform, hold individuals accountable, and show more interest in protecting children than protecting itself.”

Charles Rice spoke with the media about his client’s lawsuit. He expressed concerns over the competency of DCS, saying they’re the agency charged with protecting children, and if they’re unable to protect the children in their custody that they already know about, imagine what’s happening with the children they have no idea about.

Judah’s horrific and preventable death attracted worldwide media coverage. Donations poured in at the Youth Service Bureau, a charity that provides programs for delinquency prevention, youth development and advocacy, child abuse prevention, and connecting youth to caring adults.

Gina Hullett also started a GoFundMe on October 13th, 2021, to raise money towards seeking justice for Judah, hiring legal representation to hold those accountable, and raising awareness for the children DCS is failing.

The Hullett family worked with legislators for many years, and Judah’s Law was finally passed in July of 2022. The law allows unlicensed caregivers, such as foster parents, the chance to stop a child from being placed with their biological parents if they pose a threat to the child’s safety. The unlicensed caregivers will be permitted to challenge DCS in court to help terminate dangerous parent-child relationships.

Memorial and Legacy

Judah’s funeral was held at Lake View Funeral Home and Crematory at 247 West Johnson Road in La Porte. He was cremated, and his ashes were kept by his foster family at first. Years later, Judah’s foster family planted a tree in Kesling Park and placed his ashes at the base of it. It is underneath a small wooden headstone that reads:

“In loving memory, Judah ‘Bubba’, June 17th, 2017 to October 11th, 2021.”

A small gathering assembled for a candlelight vigil to mark the second anniversary of Judah’s death. During the ceremony, Judah was remembered as a happy little boy who brought light to his foster family for four years.

In honor of what would have been Judah’s sixth birthday, Gina and Phil buried his ashes at Kesling Park during a tree burial ceremony. The park was one of his favorite places to go and play. Gina is happy with Judah’s final resting place and said a tree in the park where her foster son played would be a fitting honor for him.

After the burial, a tribute book was made in memory of Judah. It contains a collection of memories and condolences from family and friends. The book begins with a quote from Alex McLean which reads:

“Those we love don’t go away. They walk beside us every day, unseen, unheard, but always near; still loved, still missed, and very dear.”