Inset, from left: Elizabeth Lynn Crow and Jacob Aaron Neal (Frankfort Police Department). Background: The Frankfort area where prosecutors allege Neal’s 9-year-old son was abused (Google Maps).
An Indiana father and his wife are accused of subjecting the man’s 9-year-old son to extreme neglect, allegedly starving and abusing the child as punishment while requiring him to help care for younger children in their home.
Jacob Aaron Neal, 31, and Elizabeth Lynn Crow, 27, were arrested Thursday, authorities said. Each faces a felony charge of neglect of a dependent resulting in serious bodily injury.
The investigation began Aug. 26, 2026, after Indiana University Health Frankfort Hospital notified police about a child with suspicious injuries believed to be consistent with abuse, according to a Frankfort Police Department press release. Officers said the boy was malnourished and had extensive bruising as well as multiple fractured bones.
Because of the seriousness of his injuries, the child was transferred to Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis and admitted in critical condition. Police later said he had been upgraded to stable condition.
The Indiana Department of Child Services removed several other children from the home shared by Neal and Crow. Authorities said those children were found to be healthy.
Investigators allege Neal and Crow deprived the boy of food as a form of discipline.
Court records reviewed by Indianapolis FOX affiliate WXIN detailed the extent of the child’s condition. Police said he weighed 51 pounds, with his ribs visibly showing because of malnutrition. The boy reportedly wore size 4 diapers and was “unaware when he would soil himself.”
Medical personnel reportedly documented bruises on the child’s face and head, broken ribs, compression fractures in his spine, open wounds on his hands, gastrointestinal bleeding, a fungal lung infection, broken teeth and bedsores.
When authorities questioned the couple about the boy’s injuries, Neal and Crow allegedly offered conflicting explanations, according to court documents.
MORE STORY: Putin urges Russians to stop drinking, keep making babies – NewsFinale
Neal reportedly told doctors the child had fallen while climbing a bookshelf, while Crow said he had fallen from a swing at a park about a week earlier. Doctors told police they did not believe the explanations, as they could not account for the severity of the boy’s injuries.
During an interview with investigators, Neal allegedly said the children were given food whenever they were hungry.
When investigators asked Crow when the boy was last happy and healthy, she responded, “It’s not like he’s been like this for a week or anything. This is just the past couple days and not even this bad,” Indianapolis NBC affiliate WTHR reported, citing court documents.
Investigators also found text messages between Neal and Crow discussing the boy’s food and punishment, several of which were published by WTHR and WXIN and read, in part:
- Sept. 8, 2025: Neal texted Crow that his son “Can go without eating today to see how he likes it.” Crow responded that because the child ate that day, he needed to be spanked.
- Dec. 17, 2025: Neal texted Crow that the boy “needed to be put on medication and locked the f— up.” Later in the conversation, Crow replied, “I don’t trust the neighbors not to call the cops & I CANNOT risk you getting in trouble & us losing the kids.”
- Aug. 11, 2026: Crow texted Neal about the child stealing food, saying, “I’m f—ing done with him!!” before adding, “He’s been trying to talk to me all day & I’ve not responded to him a single time. I’m done w this abusive relationship & then him fake apologizing.”
- Aug. 11, 2026: One of the defendants texted the other, “HE’S GOT TO GO,” and “HE HAS GOT TO GET TF OUT OF OUR HOUSE! He’s a lost cause, there’s NO changing him!!”
- Undated: Crow texted Neal about the boy, writing, “ALL DAY [he] has been begging for food like a f—ing dog,” and “Every 2 minutes ALL DAY LONG he’s asked about food!! Nonstop!! I told them to leave me tf alone & let me relax for a little bit.”
Frankfort Police Chief Scott Shoemaker called the case “heartbreaking.”
Neal and Crow both pleaded not guilty during their initial hearings Friday, court records show. A judge revoked Crow’s bond because she was already out on bond in another child-neglect case. Neal’s bond was set at $40,000. The defendants are scheduled to appear for a pretrial hearing on Nov. 12.
The post Dad, stepmom nearly starved 9-year-old to death, complained about boy begging for food while they tried to ‘relax’: Police first appeared on Law & Crime.
RELATED: Bowling Legend and TV Icon Dies as Sport Mourns Another Tragedy