PHOTO: GEISEN FUNERAL HOMES
A 10-year-old boy, identified as Dakota Levi Stevens, made a heart-wrenching plea to a neighbor to adopt him just minutes before he was allegedly killed by his foster mother. The incident occurred on April 25 in Liberty Township, Indiana, and Dakota’s death has led to serious charges against his foster mother, Jennifer Lee Wilson.
Court documents obtained by CBS Chicago revealed that Dakota died following a medical emergency. Two months later, authorities issued an arrest warrant for Jennifer Lee Wilson, 48, on a charge of reckless homicide. Wilson was apprehended on July 13 in Berrien County, Michigan, where she is currently held on a fugitive of justice warrant.
As of now, the charges in Indiana are pending, and it remains unclear if Wilson has secured legal representation. The tragic circumstances surrounding Dakota’s death are detailed in a probable cause affidavit, which describes the boy as having bruising on his neck and chest. According to WGN, Wilson admitted to lying on top of Dakota for five minutes until he stopped moving.
CBS Chicago reported that police reviewed the home’s Ring camera footage, which allegedly captured Wilson saying, “I was laying on him and he was acting bad.” Approximately 30 minutes before emergency services arrived at Wilson’s home, Dakota fled to a neighbor’s house, desperately asking her to adopt him. The boy reportedly told the neighbor that his parents hit him in the face.
However, when Wilson arrived to retrieve Dakota, the neighbor did not notice any visible injuries on the boy. The investigation revealed that Dakota’s cause of death was mechanical asphyxia, and the manner of death was ruled a homicide, as reported by NBC Chicago. Dakota’s plea for adoption and the subsequent findings have highlighted the dire circumstances he faced in his foster home.
The arrest of Jennifer Lee Wilson and the pending charges have brought attention to the tragic fate of a young boy who sought safety and love outside his assigned home. The legal proceedings will determine the consequences for Wilson, but Dakota’s tragic story serves as a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities faced by children in the foster care system.
