The parents of a seven-year-old boy have been arrested and charged with murder after the child died weighing 18 stone.

Damien O’Brien, 40, and his wife Jessica O’Brien, 41, are also facing charges of child abuse and torture relating to their late son Casper, following his death, after it was claimed he never attended school and only saw a doctor once in his life.

Police had responded to a 911 call for a child in distress at the family’s home in Flint Township, Michigan on November 4, 2025, where they found Casper severely ill.

The young boy was rushed to a local hospital where he died shortly afterward from dilated cardiomyopathy, a disease that leads to heart failure, with a contributing cause being morbid obesity, per the medical report cited by the New York Post.

Casper O'Brien died at the age of seven. Credit: Sharp Funeral Homes

Casper's records state he was 4'2" tall at the time of his death, and weighed 255 pounds - far exceeding the healthy weight for a child of his age and height, which the CDC says should be between 50 and 73 pounds.

Prosecutors say that Casper suffered "extraordinary, terrible neglect" at the hands of his parents - who also have a five-year-old daughter - throughout his short life.

Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton told WJRT: "On the face of it, this is cruel and extreme suffering from this child caused by the neglect of the parents.

"That is obesity. This child did not have a pediatrician, was only taken to the doctor I believe … once."

According to reports, Damien had a good job and the family had health insurance and had even called their veterinarian to have their dog treated on the morning of the day Casper died.

Despite this, the family is described as living in a "hoarder home", and neither Casper nor his sister had been enrolled in school.

Leyton added: "None of these kids even existed in the eyes of the government. CPS had never been out there, nobody knew about these kids, they had not been to school.

"I can’t think of what else this is, other than extraordinary, terrible neglect. And to me, that is willful and wanton misconduct, which is second-degree murder."

According to reports, the landlord of their property had tried to gain access in November after becoming concerned about the home, but the O'Briens would not let him inside.

A funeral tribute posted in November described Casper as a "bright, loving young boy whose joyful spirit touched everyone around him."

The message added: "He loved watching Super Monsters, especially his favorite character, Frankie Mash.

"He was preceded in death by his little brother, Phoenix."

Damien and Jessica O'Brien have been charged with second-degree murder, child abuse, and torture, and are being held at the Genesee County Jail without bond until their next court appearance on July 2.

Featured image credit: Sharp Funeral Homes

Michigan parents have been charged with murder after their seven-year-old son died weighing 255 pounds, according to prosecutors.

Damien O'Brien, 40, and Jessica O'Brien, 41, were charged with second-degree murder, torture, and multiple counts of second-degree child abuse following the death of their son, Casper O'Brien.

The charges stem from an investigation into the child's death after emergency services were called to the family's home in November 2025.

According to police, Jessica O'Brien contacted 911 shortly before 9:00AM to report that her son was not breathing.

First responders performed CPR before transporting Casper to hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

The Genesee County Medical Examiner's Office determined that Casper died from dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition that causes the heart to become enlarged and weakened, with morbid obesity listed as a contributing factor.

The 67th District Court on Wednesday, April 19, 2023, in Flushing.

According to an autopsy report, the seven-year-old was last seen by his primary care doctor in February 2024 and was referred to a pediatric endocrinologist.

Prosecutors allege that the appointment never took place.

Court records also allege that the couple failed to obtain appropriate medical care for their son despite having health insurance.

The autopsy report stated that Casper's diet reportedly consisted primarily of potato chips and fries due to texture sensitivities.

Investigators further alleged that the family was living in what police described as deplorable conditions.

Officers reported finding large amounts of trash throughout the property, while court documents claim the home's only toilet was not functioning and was filled with feces.

Authorities also said several dogs found inside the residence required medical attention.

According to police reports, Casper was autistic and did not attend school.

His five-year-old sister was later removed from the home by Child Protective Services.

Speaking about the case, Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton said: "Nobody knew these kids existed."

"I don't want to charge parents with neglect or murder. I didn't have any choice," he added during a press conference.

The O'Briens are due back in court in July as the case proceeds.

An attorney representing the couple had not publicly responded to the allegations at the time of writing.

Following his death, Casper was remembered in an obituary as "a bright, loving young boy whose joyful spirit touched everyone around him."

The notice added that he loved watching 'Super Monsters' and especially enjoyed the character Frankie Mash.

If convicted, the O’Briens could face life in prison.

The father of a grown man who was brutally killed in his bed by a seven-year-old boy for no reason, has revealed that they forgive the child.

On January 18, 2022, Brandon O'Quinn Rasberry, 32, was found dead in his RV in Texas, with a single gunshot wound to his head and minor graze wounds on his hands, according to the Gonzales County Sheriff's Office.

Investigators believed that Rasberry, who had only lived at the RV park for four days, had been dead for two days before he was discovered, after his employer phoned them to report him missing

Last week, a 10-year-old boy admitted to shooting Rasberry in cold blood as he slept,  sharing key details that were not known to the public in his confession.

The case had puzzled detectives for two years, after they'd scoured Rasberry's cell phone for clues and interviewed neighbors to try and find out why someone would have executed him while he slept.

However, their investigation did not throw up any leads until last week, when the 10-year-old child from Texas confessed to the killing.

The horrific crime had come to light after a local principal called to report the child's chilling confession as well as his threats to assault and kill another student.

"Based on this information the Deputy contacted the Gonzales County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division. Investigators determined based on the information the child told the school, the child may have knowledge about the murder of Brandon," the department said, via the New York Post.

Police said the boy, whose identity has not been revealed, "described in detail" things about the killing which had not been made public.

The child, who was just seven years old at the time of the murder, said he had been visiting his grandfather who lived in the same RV park at the time, and had spotted Rasberry walking around the lot.

The 10-year-old said he took a "dirt and army green" 9mm pistol from the glovebox of his grandfather's truck on the night of the killing, before creeping into Rasberry's RV, where the 32-year-old was sleeping.

Police stated: "The Child stated he observed Brandon sleeping in his bed and approached Brandon and discharged the firearm into Brandon striking him one time in the head.

"The child stated as he was leaving the RV he discharged the firearm another time into the couch inside the RV. The child then exited the RV and returned the firearm to the glovebox of the truck."

According to investigators, the child did not have a clear motive for killing Rasberry, and admitted he had never met the man or even knew his name.

Police added: "The child was also asked if he was mad at Brandon for some reason or if Brandon had ever done anything to him to make him mad, the child stated no."

Despite the horrific circumstances surrounding Rasberry's untimely death, his father, Kenneth Rasberry, has said he forgives the child for his heinous crime.

He said, per KSAT's reports: "I was shocked, very shocked. This isn’t anywhere the suspect that we thought it was."

The father added: "This is a little boy, for reasons that I’m sure these counselors and case managers and all of that, that’s going to pick that poor little boy’s brain apart.

"He needs to be prayed on. He needs to be comforted ... He’s forgiven. And he can still be saved. He’s so young. He’s definitely tormented by something."

Police were called on April 12 by a Nixon-Smiley Independent School District principal about a student who threatened to assault and kill another student on a bus, and had also made a statement about shooting and killing a man two years ago.

After being interviewed by police and revealing details that were not publicly known, police traced the suspected weapon to a pawn shop that the child's grandfather had sold it to, and matched it to the spent shell casings that were collected at the scene of the murder.

Despite his confession, the boy will not be charged with the crime, as according to Texas law, a child cannot be responsible for a crime until they are 10 years old.

The victim's brother, Jonathan Fojtik, told KENS5: "Finding out it was a seven-year-old that committed the murder, a senseless murder at that, it’s just tragic. It’s kind of hard to wrap your head around.

"I feel like the boy knew exactly what he was doing. Why wasn’t the child being supervised more?"

After the confession, the boy was placed on a 72-hour emergency detention before being taken to a psychiatric hospital in San Antonio, Texas for evaluation and treatment. The sheriff's office stated it was "because of the severity of the crime and because of the continued concern for the child’s mental wellbeing the child."

While he can not be charged with the murder, he has since been booked on charges of making terroristic threats for the incident involving his classmate and is being held in county jail.

Featured image credit: Christopher Hopefitch/Getty Images

A vegan couple is on trial for murder after their 18-month-old son starved to death.

On Wednesday, three months after the toddler's death, Ryan O'Leary, 30, and his wife Sheila, 35, were indicted on first-degree murder charges. Originally charged with manslaughter, the couple is set to appear in court on December 23.

If convicted, they could be executed.

To discover more about the case, check out the report below: 

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Prosecutor Amira Fox accused the couple of "horrendous" abuse for feeding their child a diet of raw fruit and vegetables. A diet that resulted in the boy weighing just 17 pounds at the time of his death, as per the Metro.

To put this into context, a healthy seven-month-old baby should weigh 17 pounds - not an 18-month-old toddler.

Fox accused the O'Learys of torturing their son and their three surviving children, aged three, five and 11.

The toddler, whose name is not known, died from "starvation and extreme lack of care."

Sheila O'Leary revealed to investigators that the family has a raw vegan diet, but that the boy was breastfed, and in the week leading up to his death, had only consumed breast milk.

The day before the toddler died, he experienced shallow breathing while being nursed by his mother. According to reports, she admitted that she should have called for help, but instead fell asleep with her husband.

An autopsy after the September 27 death revealed that the child had perished as a result of malnutrition, including dehydration, microsteatosis of liver and swelling of hands, feet, and legs.

When Sheila discovered that her son wasn't breathing, she called 911. While waiting for assistance, her husband attempted to revive the child, but it was to no avail and he was pronounced dead by paramedics.

Two of the couple's surviving children, aged three and five, were discovered with signs of malnutrition, discoloured skin and blackened teeth, and they have since been taken into the care of social services.

The eldest daughter was in the best health. Investigators discovered that this was because Ryan O'Leary was her stepdad and she frequently made visits to her biological father in Virginia. He is now caring for her full-time.

An Indiana woman is facing charges of reckless homicide following the tragic death of her 10-year-old foster son.

Court documents obtained by WGN, NBC Chicago and CBS Chicago detail how 10-year-old Dakota Levi Stevens died on April 25 - just two days after 48-year-old Jennifer Lee Wilson was captured on a Ring doorbell cam using her body weight in an alleged attempt subdue the child.

"I was laying on him and he was acting bad," the 340-pound Wilson says in the video, which has been reviewed by police.

The incident took place outside of Wilson's home in Liberty Township, with the affidavit revealing that Wilson sat on the boy for over five minutes.

Young Dakota reportedly could be heard screaming before he stopped moving and fell silent. NBC Chicago reported that Wilson asked if Dakota was "faking", before she noticed that the child's eyelids had gone pale.

The boy weighed just 90 pounds. Police say a lot of Wilson's weight was directed to the child's head and neck, per WGN News.

Concerned for his well-being, Wilson asked one of her daughters to call 911.

When emergency services arrived at the scene, they found Dakota unconscious and without a pulse.

Efforts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful, and he was airlifted to a hospital in South Bend, where he was pronounced dead two days later.

The local coroner's office determined Dakota's cause of death to be mechanical asphyxia, ruling it a homicide.

It has also been reported that - just minutes before being restrained by Wilson - Dakota had approached a neighbor, pleading to be adopted.

CBS Chicago reports that the boy allegedly asked the neighbor to adopt him because his biological parents would hit him in the face, per the affidavit.

The neighbor, however, did not observe any visible injuries on Dakota when Wilson arrived to retrieve him.

Speaking WGN News, Dakota's former foster father, Hayden Hetzel, said that the boy did sometimes struggle to control his emotions, but that he was taught how to safely physically calm the child. "He was just a kid given a bad hand, but he made the best of every situation," Hetzel said.

Following Dakota's death, Wilson's foster care license was revoked, and she is no longer permitted to care for children.

She was arrested on July 13 in Berrien County, Michigan, after an arrest warrant was issued in Indiana.

Wilson remains in custody pending extradition, facing charges that could lead to up to six years in prison if convicted of reckless homicide.

Our thoughts go out to Dakota's loved ones following this horrendous tragedy.

Featured image credit: Geisen Funeral Homes