AZ - Mentally handicapped 13-year old girl dies in cage filled with feces - Tempe, 1/22/25

[Clearsky]

Mother, grandmother arrested in connection to death of 13-year-old girl

A 13-year-old girl's mother and grandmother were arrested after the girl was found unresponsive and later died at a hospital, police announced Wednesday night.

www.abc15.com

Officials say 55-year-old Virginia Lujan called police Tuesday night just before 9 p.m. after she said she found her 13-year-old granddaughter not breathing. The girl was then rushed to a hospital where she later died Wednesday morning.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“The best way to describe it, it was a bunk bed, but the lower bed of that bunk was not there. And the bunk bed around the bottom was surrounded by baby cages and makeshift bars,” Tempe police spokesperson Jessica Ells described

Police: Family members kept teen in cage, abused her to death

Two family members are accused of abusing a teen girl, who had the mental capacity of a toddler, to death.

www.kktv.com

 

[tlcya]

Lujan and Hodges had allegedly admitted to police that the girl was kept in the cage "to keep control of her." Police say the girl had serious cognitive delays and had the mental capacity of a 3-year-old.
Mother, grandmother arrested in connection to death of 13-year-old girl

I doubt very highly that crating this poor girl in a makeshift cage full of her own feces and filth did anything to improve her mental capacity
---------------
"No child should ever have to endure suffering. We are committed to uncovering the truth and seeking justice on her behalf," said Chief McCoy. "The tragic loss of a child is a profound reminder of our shared responsibility to protect the most vulnerable in our community. Investigations like this demand meticulous attention to detail and sensitivity to the emotional toll that it takes on everyone involved. The Tempe Police Department is committed to holding these individuals responsible and ensuring that no child endures this type of suffering."
13-year-old kept in cage dies at hospital; mother and grandmother charged

Neighbors didn't even know the 13 year old child existed, although they did see the other children coming and going. There were four other children in that home, all belonging to Jami Hodges, who dumped them off onto the grandmother to care for apparently. Can you imagine? being a child in that household where your 13 year old cognitively impaired sibling is kept in a cage filled with ? Those 4 kids range in age from 4 to 14 and are all now in the care of child protective services.

Mother and grandmother arrested in connection to death of 13-year-old girl kept in cage

The girl was apparently named Melanie RIP sweet child.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=1160688155493086

Jami's FB

In it there are lots of posts about her workouts, her youngest daughter, who she calls her sunshine, and lots of photos of her four still living children. Scarce sign that Melanie ever existed can be found there.

 

[borndem]

Few words come to mind that I could post here. <sigh>
This type of madness, horror, and hurt seems to never go away.
Wondering which came first -- was the child truly mentally and perhaps physically disadvantaged from birth, or did her severe care-taking bring on and make worse the disadvantages that the child may have had?
I also wonder how much or how often (if ever??) the other children knew of her.
At least the child is in no more danger now.
Fly high, little girl, fly high.

 

[LoveyG]

I think maybe she is the older girl in the small handful of pics that show 5 kids. She disappeared from the photo shoots in early 2023, from what I saw. If I'm correct, the looked to be a beautiful little girl.

 

[Gemmie]

I'm kinda at a loss here. What in the world?? Why would they do this since they had a caged child? Who would have done that? Certainly not the mother. I'd THINK. Am I missing something?

A haunting mural could be seen from the family's window. While it could be a Halloween decoration, it could be representative of something much darker.

A haunting mural found in the window of a home where a 13-year-old girl was found badly injured from what police believe was the result of extreme neglect.

13-year-old kept in cage dies at hospital; mother and grandmother charged

A 13-year-old girl in Tempe found with developmental issues and allegedly living in a makeshift cage died after being hospitalized. The girl's mother and grandmother are accused of child abuse.

www.fox10phoenix.com

 

[Clearsky]

Tempe grandmother indicted after girl found in 'grossly unsanitary conditions' dies

The Maricopa County Attorney's Office said a bunk bed had been adapted into a "makeshift enclosure" for the girl.

eu.azcentral.com

Tempe police went to the home of 55-year-old Virginia Lujan on Jan. 21 after Lujan called 911 to report that her 13-year-old granddaughter wasn't breathing.

 

[tlcya]

Duplicate thread
AZ - Mentally handicapped 13-year old girl dies in cage filled with feces - Tempe, 1/22/25