#truecrimejunkie

[criminol]

The Murder of Carla Walker

Carla Jan Walker was a 17-year-old schoolgirl living in Texas, USA, she enjoyed dancing and spending time with her friends and boyfriend, Rodney. Carla was described as likeable and ‘the kind of girl who smiled and said hello to everyone,’ she was thinking about enrolling at Texas Tech University.

On 17th February 1974, Carla was sitting with Rodney in his car in the parking lot of Brunswick Ridglea Bowel, they had just attended a Valentine’s Day dance at Western Hills High School and were on their way home. The door was opened and an unknown assailant pistol-whipped Rodney who fell unconscious. Rodney’s last memory was Carla being grabbed and taken by the man, Rodney had heard the man say, ‘You’re coming with me,’ and Carla screaming for help. When he regained consciousness, Carla was nowhere to be seen, he quickly drove to Carla’s home and told her parents what had happened and to contact the emergency services.

The police were called and searched the car park, Carla’s purse and a magazine clip the attacker had dropped were the only things left behind and there were no clues where her abductor had taken her. On 20th February, Carla’s body was found near a reservoir, she was covered in scratches and bruises and her dress was bloody and ripped. An autopsy showed she had been beaten, tortured, raped and strangled. Toxicology reports showed she had been injected by morphine and bodily fluids were found on her clothing. The technology in the 1970s was not advanced enough to use the DNA samples to identify the killer but they were stored.

The murder remained a cold case for almost 50 years until in September 2020 the DNA was finally matched to Glen Samuel McCurley. Three days into his trial, McCurley changed his plea to guilty and was sentenced to life in prison.

Investigators believe McCurley may have been involved in the rapes and murders of at least three other girls and young women in the same area in the 1970s and 1980s though he had not been charged with any additional crimes.

[cyarsk52-20]

Thank God🙏🏽🙏🏽

[opalowl1988]

Having a true crime doc in the background while I'm doing absolutely anything else.

Ahhhh my place

[nobodynocrimepod]

PT.1 of 3. William George Bonin also known as the Freeway Killer, was an American serial killer and twice-paroled sex offender who committed the rape, torture, and murder of a minimum of twenty-one young men and boys in a series of killings in southern California from May 1979 to June 1980. On at least twelve occasions, Bonin was assisted by one of his four known accomplices he is also suspected of committing a further fifteen murders.

Do you have a scary story or a moment of paranormal activity? Write to us now to hear your story read out on the podcast!

Email us today: nobodynocrimepod@gmail.com

Follow us on socials:

Instagram: @nobodynocrimepod

Twitter: NBNC_podcast

Update Description

[cyarskaren52]

Morbidology Podcast

And Gustavo did an outstanding job as a father and he doted on his daughter: “She was his life. He would always say she was his princess,” a family friend went on to recall.1Initially, he was clueless on how to raise a child but with help from his co-workers and relatives, Gustavo mastered diapering and feeding. When the time came, Gustavo enrolled Elisa in the prestigious Montessori Day School in Brooklyn. “You couldn’t resist that smile. Elisa always clung to people, she had so much love,” recollected one of her teachers, Barbara Simmons.2 However, as things were finally on the upswing in Elisa’s life, an affidavit was signed which stated that Awilda had overcome her addiction and now had a permanent accommodation at the Farragut Houses in Brooklyn, with her new husband. On paper, it appeared as though Awilda finally had her life together and now she wanted her daughter back.

By 1991, Awilda was granted unsupervised visitation with Elisa. Awilda’s two eldest children soon informed relatives that during these visits, Awilda would brutally beat Elisa and claim that she was possessed by the devil. You would think that upon hearing this information, these relatives would take that information straight to authorities. They did not. Elisa began to seem scared and withdrawn and not her usual giddy self. Gustavo and a number of Elisa’s teachers noticed that she often arrived back home from these visits bearing bruising. On one occasion, Elisa had bruising around her genitalia. It was observed by Gustavo that Elisa had started to wet the bed and would often be sick once returning home from Awilda. Gustavo went straight to New York’s Child Welfare Administration to report these findings, as did one of Elisa’s teachers. Elisa herself even confessed to the abuse to a social worker.

Gustavo applied to have the visitation rights ceased. Tragically, the courts denied his application and the visitations were allowed to continue. By 1993, Gustavo had purchased plane tickets and had planned to move back to Cuba, taking Elisa with him. However, Gustavo and Elisa never made the flight – Gustavo was rushed to hospital with respiratory complications and died from lung cancer on the very day they were scheduled to leave for Cuba – 26 May, 1994. The death of Gustavo was the nail in the coffin of Elisa escaping her abusive mother and ultimately, her untimely death.

Upon Gustavo’s death, Awilda filed for full custody of Elisa and was supported by social workers and Elisa’s court-appointed lawyer who claimed that Elisa wanted to be with her mother. Awilda was subsequently granted temporary custody and upon hearing this alarming news, Elsa Canizares, Gustavo’s cousin, also filed for custody. The head teacher of Elisa’s school and even Prince Michael of Greece – who had met Elisa when he visited her school – wrote letters to the Judge, informing him of the torment Elisa had experienced at the hands of her own mother. Prince Michael even offered Elisa a scholarship to attend private school through to grade 12. They all argued that Elisa wouldn’t stand a chance if placed in custody of her mother. Regardless of the mounting evidence as to why Awilda was not a suitable mother, in 1994, she was granted full and permanent custody of Elisa by judge Phoebe Greenbaum, who in 1979, denied a father custody of his 10-year-old son, stating that the boy’s grandparents were his “psychological parents.”3 It was a decision that would prove to be fatal.

As soon as Elisa moved in with her mother, the abuse continued. Elisa was taken out of her prestigious school and sent to a public one. Here, she was reported as being withdrawn and uncommunicative. She was also reported to be riddled with bruises each week and appeared to have difficulty walking. Again, this clear evidence of abuse was reported but these reports were discarded due to apparently being “not reportable.” Upon finding out that the school had reported suspicions of child abuse, Awilda withdrew Elisa from the school. Now, Elisa had nowhere to escape her mother, her tormentor. She would be locked in her bedroom 24 hours seven days a week. Elisa wouldn’t even be allowed out to use the bathroom and would defecate the bed.

Awilda started to tell relatives that Elisa was possessed by the devil and that she had been put under a spell by her father. Awilda’s brother, Rafael Nahones, and her sister, Monsarrate Torres, said they believed the tall tales of Elsa’s demons and therefore never questioned their sister’s torment of Elisa. Neighbours would say they frequently heard Elisa screaming for help and begging her mother to stop hurting her. “We thought it was their way of disciplining the kids,” said neighbour, Tony Ng.

The apartment was a home of horrors to say the very least. Elisa would be forced to eat her own excrement, her head would be used as a mop, she would be beaten with various objects and burnt and she would be sexually assaulted with a hairbrush and toothbrush. Elisa was deprived of food while she watched her half-siblings chow down on dinner every night. Carlos Lopez, Awilda’s husband, would even encourage his own children to hit Elisa. On 15 November, 1994, Awilda called her sister and told her that Elisa was “like retarded on the bed,” and that she had some sort of fluid leaking from her nose and mouth. The fluid was brain fluid. Elisa was left on the bed until the following day when Awilda invited a neighbour inside to view the body. Upon viewing Elisa’s body the neighbour immediately called an ambulance but it was far too late. Elisa was dead at just 6-years-old.

https://morbidology.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Elisa-Izquierdo-funeral.jpg

Elisa was buried in a white coffin so small that there was only room for four pallbearers. At the front was Elsa Canizares, Gustavo’s cousin who had fought for custody of Elisa. Snow blanketed the ground on Cypress Hills Cemetery where Elisa was to be buried following the sombre funeral at Ponce Funeral Home in Bushwick, Brooklyn. As the dainty coffin was lowered into the ground, mourners threw in pink carnations. Elisa was buried in a white lace dress that draped over her thin and frail body. On her head, she wore a garland made of white flowers that couldn’t quite conceal the bruise near her temple; a grim reminder of the abuse she sustained before her death. During her funeral, the Rev. Gianni Agostinelli blamed “the silence of many and neglect of child welfare institutions,” for the death of Elisa.4 The Daily News wrote in their front-page editorial: “Eliza Izquierdo is finally at peace. May her mother never find a moment of it again.”

In June of 1996, Awilda Lopez pleaded guilty to murder after maintaining her innocence for months. She cried during the court proceeding in Manhattan Supreme Court before finally admitting that she had thrown Elisa at the wall. “Elisa languished unconscious in the apartment until the next day with brain fluid leaking from an ear,” said Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Donna Henken.5 According to Awilda’s lawyer, she was “horrified by her own actions.” Prosecutors had agreed to Awilda’s plea to spare her two surviving children the trauma of reliving Elisa’s death at a trial.

Awilda was sentenced to 15 years to life imprisonment where she has received all of the protections of the legal system – the same very system that failed to save Elisa. The tragic life and death of Elisa Izquierdo became a symbol of the failures in New York’s Child Welfare Administration and Family Court, whose bureaucracy allowed this little girl to slip right through the cracks and into her grave. The story became a national disgrace and lawyers would cite the case as an example of chronic and systemic problems. By 1996, Mayor Giuliani declared that he would abolish the city’s Child Welfare Administration and rebuild it from top to bottom. He also signed Elisa’s Law into legislation which was designed to balance the need for increased accountability through public awareness and government oversight.

Footnotes:

Time, 24 June, 2001 – “Abandoned to her Fate”

New York Daily, 28 November, 1995 – “A Bitter Last Farewell”

Akron Beacon Journal, 30 November, 1995 – “Death of an Abused Girl”

New York Daily News, 30 November, 1995 – “Slain 6-Year-Old Is Laid to Rest”

New York Daily News, 25 June, 1996 – “Mom Pleads Guilty to Elisa’s Murder”

Sent from my iPhone

The Shameful Death of Elisa Izquierdo

Elisa Izquierdo was born on 11 February, 1989, in Woodhull Hospital, Brooklyn, New York. Her father, Gustavo, was a Cuban immigrant while her mother, Awilda, was Puerto Rican raised in Brooklyn. Throughout the pregnancy, Awilda, a drug addict, continued to abuse drugs. As a result, Elisa was born addicted to crack cocaine. Awilda carried on this drug abuse following the birth and Gustavo, worried about the safety of their daughter, filed for full custody which was granted.

Gustavo was a fantastic father that doted on his precious daughter - “She was his life. He would always say she was his princess,” a family friend went on to recall. As Elisa was in preschool, an affidavit was signed which stated that Awilda had overcome her addiction, had a permanent accommodation, and was now a married woman expecting another child. On paper, she seemed to have her life together.

By 1991, Awilda was granted unsupervised visitation with her daughter, Elisa. Awilda’s two eldest children informed relatives that during these visits, Awilda would brutally beat Elisa. You would think that upon hearing this information these relatives would take that information straight to authorities. They did not. Gustavo and a number of Elia’s teachers noticed that Elisa often arrived back home from these visits bearing bruising. On one occasion, Elisa even had bruising around the genitalia. It was noticed by Gustavo that Elisa had began to wet the bed and would often be sick once returning home. Gustavo went straight to the authorities to report these findings, as did one teacher. Elisa herself even confessed to the abuse to a social worker.

In 1992, Gustavo applied to have the visitation rights ceased; tragically, the courts denied this application and the visitations were allowed to continue. By 1993, Gustavo had purchased airplane tickets and had planned to move back to Cuba, taking Elisa with him. However, Gustavo and Elisa never made the flight - Gustavo was rushed to hospital with respiratory complications and died from lung cancer. The death of Gustavo was the nail in the coffin of Elisa escaping her abusive mother. Upon his death, Awilda filed for full custody of Elisa. She was initially granted temporary custody and upon hearing this terrifying news, Elsa Canizares, Gustavo’s cousin, also filed for custody. The head teacher of Elisa’s school and even Prince Michael of Greece, who had met Elisa in her school, wrote letters to the Judge, informing him of the torment Elisa had experienced at the hands of her own mother. Regardless of the mounting evidence as to why Awilda was not a suitable mother, in 1994, Awilda was granted full and permanent custody of Elisa: a decision that would prove to be fatal.

Almost immediately, the abuse began. Elisa was taken out of her preschool and sent to a different one. Here she was reported as being withdrawn and uncommunicative. She was also reported to be riddled with bruises each week and appeared to have difficulty walking. Again, this clear evidence of abuse was reported but these reports were discarded due to apparently being “not reportable.” Enraged, Awilda withdrew Elisa from the school. Upon this withdrawal, Elisa was locked in her bedroom 24/7. She wasn’t even allowed out to use the bathroom. Neighbours often heard Elisa screaming and begging Awilda to stop. This was reported to the authorities but again, no action was taken. On 15 November, Awilda called her sister and told her that Elisa was “like retarded on the bed,” and that she had some sort of fluid leaking from her nose and mouth. The fluid was brain fluid. Elisa was left on the bed until the following day when Awilda invited a neighbour inside to view the body. The neighbour immediately called an ambulance but it was far too late - Elisa was dead.

Awilda confessed that she had thrown Elisa head first into a concrete wall two days before the ambulance was called. She revealed that Elisa hadn’t spoken or moved since the incident. Medical examiners were horrified at the sight of little Elisa and couldn’t even begin to imagine the torture she had endured by somebody who was supposed to be her caregiver. She had numerous injuries which included broken fingers (one finger bone was even protruding through the skin), burns and cuts over her head, face, and body, and internal injuries. An autopsy also revealed that her genitalia and rectum bore signs of trauma which included tearing. It was later reported that Awilda had often sexually assaulted Elisa with a toothbrush and a hairbrush. Awilda’s husuband, Carlos Lopez, also partook. They even forced Elisa to eat her own faeces on a number of occasions.

It was shown that all of the injuries had been sustained over a period of time; she had been tortured from the moment she entered the house. The abuse surrounding this case is extremely abhorrent but even more abhorrent is the fact that it was easily preventable had the authorities responded accordingly. Awilda was sentenced to 15 years to life imprisonment. Her next parole hearing is July 2018.

[hellbentproductions1]

The Manson Family: Murders

[crimerecord]

Nothing matters but the facts. Without them, the science of criminal investigation is nothing more than a guessing game. -Blake Edwards

[awesewm]

Having fun making this tumbler for my sis who needed to get her head checked... like seriously... 🤣

[cultvault]

📣📣So excited to announce that for @crimecon_uk June 10th and 11th, I’ll be going live with none other than @jon_atack. We will be discussing Jon’s experiences with Scientology, his work around cult education and prevention as well as discussing coercive control and fair-gaming. There will be book signings and a Q+A and then we will be at the bar to continue discussions in the evening. I’d absolutely love to have listeners in the audience. You can get your tickets today with 10% using the code CULT at the checkout. It’s going to be amazing!! Will you be there? #cult #cults #coercivecontrol #scientology #scientologytheaftermath #jonatack #apieceofbluesky #crimecon #crimecon2023 #truecrime #truecrimecommunity #truecrimepodcast #truecrimeaddict #truecrimejunkie #cultpodcast #podcasthost #podcastinterview #podcastlive #podcastlove https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp0CWr2Ilau/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[dashboardc33]

For sale please click the link in bio #truecrime #truecrimepodcast #truecrimeaddict #truecrimejunkie #tumbler #travelmug https://www.instagram.com/p/Co3t9s5MdbP/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[insidethethinblueline]

SOUTHERN INJUSTICE: The Suspicious Death Of Grant Solomon (Episode 83)

[criminol]

The Murder of Lola Daviet

Lola Daviet was a 12-year-old middle school student living in Paris, France, she was a national champion at aerobics.

On 14th October 2022, Johan Daviet reported his daughter, Lola’s, disappearance to the police when she failed to arrive home after school. CCTV captured Lola entering her apartment building at 15.20 before following a woman who was later identified as 24-year-old Dahbia Benkired. Benkired was later seen leaving the building at around 5pm struggling with ‘heavy luggage.’

At 23.30, Lola’s body was found in a plastic box, her body had been mutilated, gagged and tied up. The cause of death was cardio-respiratory failure and the body showed signs of asphyxia and cervical compression. Disturbing rumours about Lola being disembowelled and that there were attempts to sell the body circulated in French media, it was also reported that numbers ‘0′ and ‘1′ were put on Lola’s feet at that Lola’s murderer may have planned to sell her organs to organ traffickers.

Benkired confessed to waiting for Lola to come home before luring the young girl to her sister’s apartment. Benkired then ordered Lola to shower and forced the schoolgirl to perform a sex act on her. Benkired then put tape over Lola’s mouth and stabbed her to death, slashing her throat and choking her. It is thought Lola was subjected to an attack so brutal the full details are unlikely to be released.

Dehbia Benkired, who was deemed mentally fit and had no previous criminal convictions, was indicated on charges of murder, torture and rape. Her psychological stability has since been questioned. During her interrogation, Benkired showed no remorse or empathy towards Lola and fluctuated between confessing and denying the crime, when shown pictures of Lola’s body she stated, ‘That doesn’t make me hot, or cold. I was raped too.’ She also claimed her motive was dispute with Lola’s mother who had not given her a hall pass for the building. Three men were also arrested for crimes connected to the case including a 43-year-old male who admitted to helping Benkired leave Paris and stay at his home.

Benkired was found to have overstayed her visa and failed to comply with a notice to leave France issued in August, due to this the case gained a lot of attention from anti-immigration and far right political groups in France. Lola’s family have issued a statement saying people should "immediately stop using the name and image of our child for political ends."

[cyarsk52-20]

Big Facts!!! Nobody gives a FQ until we put the pressure on the media and the cops as if we’re putting both feet on their necks

For example, r Kelly was raping and abusing young women and children for nearly three decades but it took until 2019 for him to be exposed to the world as the monster he was and two years more for him to be found guilty. If he had mostly white victims he would be under the jail rn without any outrage or pressure. Why should we as black folks have to share our trauma to get justice and accountability ? I truly hope and pray that #CarlethiaRussell is found ALIVE. I've been shaking ever since hearing her story. People using babies as bait? Unthinkable. Truly horrific.

update:

[opalowl1988]

waking up with a nice cup of coffee and a true crime documentary on YouTube. 

[nobodynocrimepod]

This week No Body No Crime takes on the infamous Jeffery Dahmer. Jeffrey Murdered 17 boys between 1978 to 1991. He pleaded guilty and confessed to everything.

Do you have a scary story or a moment of paranormal activity? Write to us now to hear your story read out on the podcast!

Email us today: nobodynocrimepod@gmail.com

Follow us on socials:

Instagram: @nobodynocrimepod

Twitter: NBNC_podcast

[cyarskaren52]

Morbidology Podcast

And Gustavo did an outstanding job as a father and he doted on his daughter: “She was his life. He would always say she was his princess,” a family friend went on to recall.1Initially, he was clueless on how to raise a child but with help from his co-workers and relatives, Gustavo mastered diapering and feeding. When the time came, Gustavo enrolled Elisa in the prestigious Montessori Day School in Brooklyn. “You couldn’t resist that smile. Elisa always clung to people, she had so much love,” recollected one of her teachers, Barbara Simmons.2 However, as things were finally on the upswing in Elisa’s life, an affidavit was signed which stated that Awilda had overcome her addiction and now had a permanent accommodation at the Farragut Houses in Brooklyn, with her new husband. On paper, it appeared as though Awilda finally had her life together and now she wanted her daughter back.

By 1991, Awilda was granted unsupervised visitation with Elisa. Awilda’s two eldest children soon informed relatives that during these visits, Awilda would brutally beat Elisa and claim that she was possessed by the devil. You would think that upon hearing this information, these relatives would take that information straight to authorities. They did not. Elisa began to seem scared and withdrawn and not her usual giddy self. Gustavo and a number of Elisa’s teachers noticed that she often arrived back home from these visits bearing bruising. On one occasion, Elisa had bruising around her genitalia. It was observed by Gustavo that Elisa had started to wet the bed and would often be sick once returning home from Awilda. Gustavo went straight to New York’s Child Welfare Administration to report these findings, as did one of Elisa’s teachers. Elisa herself even confessed to the abuse to a social worker.

Gustavo applied to have the visitation rights ceased. Tragically, the courts denied his application and the visitations were allowed to continue. By 1993, Gustavo had purchased plane tickets and had planned to move back to Cuba, taking Elisa with him. However, Gustavo and Elisa never made the flight – Gustavo was rushed to hospital with respiratory complications and died from lung cancer on the very day they were scheduled to leave for Cuba – 26 May, 1994. The death of Gustavo was the nail in the coffin of Elisa escaping her abusive mother and ultimately, her untimely death.

Upon Gustavo’s death, Awilda filed for full custody of Elisa and was supported by social workers and Elisa’s court-appointed lawyer who claimed that Elisa wanted to be with her mother. Awilda was subsequently granted temporary custody and upon hearing this alarming news, Elsa Canizares, Gustavo’s cousin, also filed for custody. The head teacher of Elisa’s school and even Prince Michael of Greece – who had met Elisa when he visited her school – wrote letters to the Judge, informing him of the torment Elisa had experienced at the hands of her own mother. Prince Michael even offered Elisa a scholarship to attend private school through to grade 12. They all argued that Elisa wouldn’t stand a chance if placed in custody of her mother. Regardless of the mounting evidence as to why Awilda was not a suitable mother, in 1994, she was granted full and permanent custody of Elisa by judge Phoebe Greenbaum, who in 1979, denied a father custody of his 10-year-old son, stating that the boy’s grandparents were his “psychological parents.”3 It was a decision that would prove to be fatal.

As soon as Elisa moved in with her mother, the abuse continued. Elisa was taken out of her prestigious school and sent to a public one. Here, she was reported as being withdrawn and uncommunicative. She was also reported to be riddled with bruises each week and appeared to have difficulty walking. Again, this clear evidence of abuse was reported but these reports were discarded due to apparently being “not reportable.” Upon finding out that the school had reported suspicions of child abuse, Awilda withdrew Elisa from the school. Now, Elisa had nowhere to escape her mother, her tormentor. She would be locked in her bedroom 24 hours seven days a week. Elisa wouldn’t even be allowed out to use the bathroom and would defecate the bed.

Awilda started to tell relatives that Elisa was possessed by the devil and that she had been put under a spell by her father. Awilda’s brother, Rafael Nahones, and her sister, Monsarrate Torres, said they believed the tall tales of Elsa’s demons and therefore never questioned their sister’s torment of Elisa. Neighbours would say they frequently heard Elisa screaming for help and begging her mother to stop hurting her. “We thought it was their way of disciplining the kids,” said neighbour, Tony Ng.

The apartment was a home of horrors to say the very least. Elisa would be forced to eat her own excrement, her head would be used as a mop, she would be beaten with various objects and burnt and she would be sexually assaulted with a hairbrush and toothbrush. Elisa was deprived of food while she watched her half-siblings chow down on dinner every night. Carlos Lopez, Awilda’s husband, would even encourage his own children to hit Elisa. On 15 November, 1994, Awilda called her sister and told her that Elisa was “like retarded on the bed,” and that she had some sort of fluid leaking from her nose and mouth. The fluid was brain fluid. Elisa was left on the bed until the following day when Awilda invited a neighbour inside to view the body. Upon viewing Elisa’s body the neighbour immediately called an ambulance but it was far too late. Elisa was dead at just 6-years-old.

https://morbidology.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Elisa-Izquierdo-funeral.jpg

Elisa was buried in a white coffin so small that there was only room for four pallbearers. At the front was Elsa Canizares, Gustavo’s cousin who had fought for custody of Elisa. Snow blanketed the ground on Cypress Hills Cemetery where Elisa was to be buried following the sombre funeral at Ponce Funeral Home in Bushwick, Brooklyn. As the dainty coffin was lowered into the ground, mourners threw in pink carnations. Elisa was buried in a white lace dress that draped over her thin and frail body. On her head, she wore a garland made of white flowers that couldn’t quite conceal the bruise near her temple; a grim reminder of the abuse she sustained before her death. During her funeral, the Rev. Gianni Agostinelli blamed “the silence of many and neglect of child welfare institutions,” for the death of Elisa.4 The Daily News wrote in their front-page editorial: “Eliza Izquierdo is finally at peace. May her mother never find a moment of it again.”

In June of 1996, Awilda Lopez pleaded guilty to murder after maintaining her innocence for months. She cried during the court proceeding in Manhattan Supreme Court before finally admitting that she had thrown Elisa at the wall. “Elisa languished unconscious in the apartment until the next day with brain fluid leaking from an ear,” said Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Donna Henken.5 According to Awilda’s lawyer, she was “horrified by her own actions.” Prosecutors had agreed to Awilda’s plea to spare her two surviving children the trauma of reliving Elisa’s death at a trial.

Awilda was sentenced to 15 years to life imprisonment where she has received all of the protections of the legal system – the same very system that failed to save Elisa. The tragic life and death of Elisa Izquierdo became a symbol of the failures in New York’s Child Welfare Administration and Family Court, whose bureaucracy allowed this little girl to slip right through the cracks and into her grave. The story became a national disgrace and lawyers would cite the case as an example of chronic and systemic problems. By 1996, Mayor Giuliani declared that he would abolish the city’s Child Welfare Administration and rebuild it from top to bottom. He also signed Elisa’s Law into legislation which was designed to balance the need for increased accountability through public awareness and government oversight.

Footnotes:

Time, 24 June, 2001 – “Abandoned to her Fate”

New York Daily, 28 November, 1995 – “A Bitter Last Farewell”

Akron Beacon Journal, 30 November, 1995 – “Death of an Abused Girl”

New York Daily News, 30 November, 1995 – “Slain 6-Year-Old Is Laid to Rest”

New York Daily News, 25 June, 1996 – “Mom Pleads Guilty to Elisa’s Murder”

Sent from my iPhone

The Shameful Death of Elisa Izuierdo

The tragic case of Elisa Izquierdo is an all-too-familiar tale of bureaucratic ineptitude. Her short life and brutal death was so horrendous that it reduced even the most hardened officers to tears.

Elisa was born on the 11th of February, 1989, in Woodhull Hospital, Brooklyn, New York. Her father, Gustavo Izquierdo, was an upstanding citizen. He was a Cuban immigrant working as a chef in a homeless shelter where he met Elisa’s mother, Awilda Lopez. Awilda, on the other hand, was a struggling drug addict and all throughout the pregnancy, she continued to abuse drugs. As a result, when Elisa was born, she was addicted to crack cocaine. Following her birth, Awilda continued to abuse drugs and lived an unpredictable and dangerous lifestyle. Gustavo worried about the safety of Elisa and filed for full custody which was promptly granted.

[Continue Reading]