GUILTY IL - Liam Roberts, 6, dies from starvation, Jerseyville, 2017 *Dad & stepmom arrested*

[DakotaMayi]

The former friends told Dan, "At first we were all in disbelief. We thought she was being railroaded. We started to doubt that…how could our friend do this. Every time it comes back to a six-year-old that weighed 17 pounds. You can’t dispute that fact and she looked at that baby every day."

Another added, “17 pounds at six years old…that’s being starved and you can’t dispute that.She was the one at home all day. And even if she was the one home all day, Mike did come home at night. He should have seen it. So they’re both guilty."

https://www.google.com/amp/fox2now....f-starving-boy-to-death-plead-not-guilty/amp/


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Thankful to see this.

Liam's seven-year-old brother was hospitalized suffering from malnourishment but is now out of the hospital and said to be gaining weight and doing okay.

 

[SpeckledCactys]

Cases like these are happening so frequently now. Why would anyone even think about hurting a child?

 

[BrownRice]

There needs to be a county/state accountability process of parents who have been "in the system" and then pull their kids out of school to "home school." This seems to happen A LOT! Once the kids aren't in public anymore, they are basically invisible to anybody who can help them.

 

[DakotaMayi]

There needs to be a county/state accountability process of parents who have been "in the system" and then pull their kids out of school to "home school." This seems to happen A LOT! Once the kids aren't in public anymore, they are basically invisible to anybody who can help them.

Yes, I'm shocked to see how many just remove their children from school and they are not checked on/regulated by anyone.

 

[keeleydoll]

We pulled our kids to homeschool after incidents in school including a switchblade being pulled on our oldest son and his friend and no action taken or calls to parents, among other things including making straight As all year long and repeatedly failing the same SOL when the teacher even stated the child knew the material backwards and forwards but the child wasn’t able to show his knowledge due to the format of the tests. We have a very active local homeschool community and our kids are nowhere near isolated. In my state we are also required to show proof of yearly progress either through standardized testing or an independent evaluation.

Also, this is the first I’m seeing of this poor child and I am truly at a loss. My first child was 25lbs by 6 months old, my now 5 year old is 47” tall and 53lbs., my 3 year old is 37” tall and 34lbs. This is horrifying.


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[keeleydoll]

There needs to be a county/state accountability process of parents who have been "in the system" and then pull their kids out of school to "home school." This seems to happen A LOT! Once the kids aren't in public anymore, they are basically invisible to anybody who can help them.

We have also seen quite a few cases here recently (Gabriel Fernandez and Natalie Finn off the top of my head) where teachers and school personnel have contacted CPS on behalf of children repeatedly who the caseworkers either wrote off or claimed were fine and later found starved or in some other way abused literally to death. There are a lot of children now who are homeschooled and the vast majority are doted on by very caring parents.


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[BrownRice]

We have also seen quite a few cases here recently (Gabriel Fernandez and Natalie Finn off the top of my head) where teachers and school personnel have contacted CPS on behalf of children repeatedly who the caseworkers either wrote off or claimed were fine and later found starved or in some other way abused literally to death. There are a lot of children now who are homeschooled and the vast majority are doted on by very caring parents.


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Absolutely - I'm not saying all people who homeschool abuse their kids. But if a kid has had contact with LE or CPS previously for alleged abuse/neglect and then the parents pull the kids out of school, there needs to be some follow up.

 

[*~Aimee~*]

Esp since out of the 6 children living in the home. His children were pulled out to "homeschool. Hers cont to go to public schools.

 

[*~Aimee~*]

http://m.legacy.com/obituaries/thet...roberts&pid=187296205&referrer=0&preview=True

Liam Michael Roberts Obituary

JERSEYVILLE — Liam Michael Roberts, 6, born June 2, 2011, to Michael Roberts of Jerseyville and Kimberly Rachal of Charleston, died Friday Nov. 3, 2017. Liam is survived by his parents, a sister, Bailey Roberts of Jerseyville, two brothers, Mason Roberts and Alex Roberts of Jerseyville, two half-brothers, Andrew Roberts of Godfrey and Jacob Rachal of White Hall, and a half-sister, Saylor Roberts of Charleston. Also surviving are his paternal grandparents, Gordon and Linda Dabbs of Brighton and maternal grandmother, Patricia Patton of Baton Rouge, LA. A private memorial service was conducted by Reverend Jerry MeCaskey of Evangelical United Church of Christ of Godfrey on Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017.

 

[*~Aimee~*]

http://www.bnd.com/news/local/crime/article194055274.html

Stepmother of 6-year-old who starved to death pleads not guilty

Georgena Roberts, 42, of Jerseyville, pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and child endangerment in the death of one of their five children. The 6-year-old weighed 17 pounds at the time of his death. The father, Michael Roberts, is scheduled for a separate court date on his identical charges, according to KSDK.

 

[*~Aimee~*]

Parents who starved 6-year-old to death plead guilty to murder in Jerseyville


Parents who starved 6-year-old to death plead guilty to murder in Jerseyville

A husband and wife have pleaded guilty to murder in the 2017 starvation death of their 6-year-old son.

Michael L. Roberts and Georgena L. Roberts, both 43, of the 200 block of Ferguson Street, Jerseyville, both pled guilty to one count of first-degree murder on Nov. 1. Two counts of endangering the life and health of a child were dropped.

 

[*~Aimee~*]

Sentencing in Jerseyville starvation death delayed until January

Sentencing in Jerseyville starvation death delayed until January

JERSEYVILLE — Sentencing for a husband and wife who pleaded guilty to murder in the starvation death of their 6-year-old son has been delayed until January, according to Jersey County State’s Attorney Ben Goetten.

Michael L. Roberts and Georgena L. Roberts, both 43, of Jerseyville both pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder on Nov. 1. Two counts of endangering the life and health of a child were dropped.

 

[cocomod]

DCFS and the "pediatrician" failed little Liam. May he rest in peace knowing the "people" (I use this term loosely) who tortured him for years will be locked up and unable to hurt another baby.

 

[*~Aimee~*]

Couple who starved 6-year-old son to death to be sentenced Wednesday

Couple who starved 6-year-old son to death to be sentenced Wednesday

The hearing is set for 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 16, before Chief Circuit Judge Eric S. Pistorius, according to Jersey County State’s Attorney Ben Goetten.

 

[*~Aimee~*]

‘Evil people’: Testimony at sentencing for couple who starved son to death reveals extent of abuse
The parents of a husband and wife who both pleaded guilty to murder in the starvation death of their 6-year-old son were sentenced to 25 and 20 years, respectively, in prison this morning

 

[*~Aimee~*]

"Incomprehensible" - Jerseyville couple sentenced for murder of 6-year-old child | RiverBender.com

"Incomprehensible" - Jerseyville couple sentenced for murder of 6-year-old child


Mike and Georgena Roberts faced 20-60 years in prison following the death of Liam Roberts. Jerseyville Police Officer Scott Woelfel said he was called to the hospital the night of Liam Roberts's death and found the dead child with Mike Roberts. Upon first inspection, Woelfel said Liam Roberts's ribs were entirely visible, as were the bones in his hips. He had thinning hair, sunken eyes, sores over his and sallow cheeks – all signs of starvation. He was also wearing pajama pants designed for children of 24 months old as a 6-year-old

 

[*~Aimee~*]

Parents Sentenced in Child's Death

 

[*~Aimee~*]

They ate steak while 6-year-old son starved to death. Now Jerseyville parents are headed to jail.

“The last actual meal Liam had was about one year prior to his death, when Michael and Georgena got married,” Woelfel said. “We talked to neighbors, friends, coworkers, family members, and they all said they were never allowed to see the children. Some of the neighbors said they didn’t even know (the youngest children) existed.”

The Robertses told police they ate steak the night before Liam died. Three of their children ate chicken patties. Liam and his older brother went hungry.





They ate steak while 6-year-old son starved to death. Now Jerseyville parents are headed to jail.

• By Christine Byers St. Louis Post-Dispatch
• 5 hrs ago
  

Michael Roberts and Georgena Roberts, both of Jerseyville, have been charged with first-degree murder and child endangerment charges after police say his 6-year-old son, her step-son, died of starvation weighing only 17 pounds.


JERSEYVILLE • Six years old. 17 pounds. Protruding ribs and hip bones. Dressed in Halloween-themed pajamas meant for a 24-month-old.

That’s how Jerseyville Deputy Police Chief Scott Woelfel described the body of Liam Roberts when officers found him lying in a hospital bed at the Jersey County Hospital in November 2017. Woelfel spoke Wednesday to a courtroom packed with about 50 people eager to learn how Judge Eric Pistorius would sentence Liam’s father and stepmother, who pleaded guilty to starving the boy to death.

Michael and Georgena Roberts faced 20 to 60 years in prison after pleading guilty of murder last year.




+1

Liam Roberts, then 3, in a family photo. Photo courtesy of Kimberly Roberts


Though Pistorius called the death of Liam “beyond comprehension,” the sentences are at the low end of the range. He said the law required him to consider mitigating factors, including the couple’s mostly clear criminal records, Georgena Roberts’ own childhood trauma and their guilty pleas that spared their other children the trauma of a trial.

Many in the courtroom seemed to disagree with the sentences, shaking their heads after Pistorius announced his decision. Kim Roberts, the biological mother of Michael Roberts’ children, including Liam, had entered court praying for 60-year sentences.

“They deserve to lose their freedom and have a life sentence of sadness and sorrow,” she told Pistorius before the sentencing.

She told a reporter that she hadn’t seen Liam since he was 4. She said she had visitation rights, but Michael Roberts had not let her see him.

“For the rest of my life, I will feel the guilt that I wasn’t here when he needed me most,” she said in court. “He died terrified and alone. ... I am heartbroken and will always remain heartbroken for the rest of my life.”

The hour-long hearing was the first time she, the Robertses and other family members spoke publicly about Liam’s death, and the first time investigators have talked extensively about the case.

Woelfel said the Robertses told him they began withholding food to punish their two youngest children if they urinated or defecated on the floor.

Woelfel said school officials warned the couple about how Liam had a “food obsession” that “wasn’t normal.” Teachers said the child would go underneath the tables at school to eat scraps from the floor. They told the couple to see a doctor about his weight loss. A doctor’s referral for treatment in St. Louis was never followed up, Woelfel said.

Then, sometime between one and two years before Liam’s death, the couple began homeschooling Liam and his 7-year-old brother, who was also starved and was admitted to an ICU on the same day his father brought his brother’s body to the hospital, Woelfel said.

“The last actual meal Liam had was about one year prior to his death, when Michael and Georgena got married,” Woelfel said. “We talked to neighbors, friends, coworkers, family members, and they all said they were never allowed to see the children. Some of the neighbors said they didn’t even know (the youngest children) existed.”

The Robertses told police they ate steak the night before Liam died. Three of their children ate chicken patties. Liam and his older brother went hungry

 

[*~Aimee~*]

 

[Hraefn]

It will forever make me sick to my stomach. My 8 month old weighs 17lbs and she is only at the 25th percentile. I wish they had gotten more time.