A pair of sick foster parents allegedly beat their 3-year-old “special needs” foster daughter to death after meting out months of abuse because the girl would cry and take too long to chew her food, according to police.
Jamie Johnson, 44, and Raymond Johnson, 62, of Stanley, North Dakota, allegedly doled out closed-fist punches, kicks, head-slamming hair pulls, and other “owies” as punishments for the now-dead 3-year-old foster child who they believed was autistic, Law and Crime reported, citing the Stanley Police Department.
The girl, who was in the Johnsons’ custody for just a few months, would be abused as punishment for “infractions” such as crying and taking too long to chew her food, an affidavit reviewed by the outlet stated.
The child’s foster mom would regularly fly into a fit of rage over the 3-year-old’s eating habits. One of the Johnsons’ other foster kids told cops the girl would get “in trouble” for “leaving food in her mouth,” the report stated.
“It’s not easy, I get pretty crabby sometimes and then I feel like s–t for it,” Jamie allegedly told a friend via text message.
“Honestly, if I knew how she was I might not have taken her,” she added in reference to the child whom she called a “total brat” in another message.
In other texts, Jamie expressed the belief that the girl was “special needs” and possibly “autistic,” the report stated.
In March, the Johnsons brought the unresponsive girl to the hospital, saying that she had fallen down a flight of stairs at some point in the days prior, Law and Crime reported.
The foster mom told investigators the girl would regularly “self-inflict” injuries due to her learning disability — but revelations from the couple’s other foster children, and home security footage, revealed the hellish reality of the Johnsons’ home.
“You need to be careful with my mom,” one of the kids told investigators from the North Dakota Bureau of Investigation, describing her as the “meanest one” out of the two foster parents.
Ring camera footage from inside the home showed the wicked foster mother punching the 3-year-old child in the head with a closed fist and yanking her around by the hair — causing her to hit her head on the floor, a table, and a wall, according to the affidavit.
Other punishments Jamie allegedly inflicted included hitting the young girl with a wooden spoon on the face, stomach and head, and covering her mouth while she cried, video showed.
The girl resisted on one occasion, biting her abuser’s hand, which garnered several closed-fist punches from the foster mom, the report stated.
Johnson once beat the 3-year-old so badly that the child passed out and needed to be revived with an ice pack, the other foster children told investigators.
Jamie’s husband Raymond was called the “nice one” by the foster children — but even he dished out cruel abuse towards the 3-year-old, allegedly kicking the child and hitting her in the head when he disapproved of her behavior, the children told cops, according to the report.
Jamie and Raymond Johnson each face charges of murder, child abuse, and domestic violence and will be back in court for a preliminary hearing on July 24, KMOT reported.
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