An 8-year-old California girl died after suffering a severe asthma attack in a home prosecutors say was contaminated by cockroaches, mold and animal feces. Her mother and stepfather now face felony child neglect charges over the conditions and the alleged delay in getting her medical care.
The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office said Gabrielle Hanson, 32, and Jacob Randolph, 39, were aware of the hazardous conditions at their San Jose residence. Prosecutors also said medical workers and social services officials had repeatedly warned the couple about the potential danger to their seven children.
Even after those warnings, prosecutors allege Hanson and Randolph waited roughly eight hours to seek help when their daughter, Aurora Williams, began suffering a life-threatening medical crisis in May.
“By then, it was too late,” prosecutors said in a statement announcing the charges.
Prosecutors say Gabrielle Hanson and Jacob Randolph are facing felony child neglect charges after their 8-year-old daughter died following years of exposure to dangerous living conditions and alleged failures in her medical care. (San José Police Department)
In February 2025, more than a year before her death, a relative brought Aurora to an emergency room after she developed wheezing, breathing problems and other asthma symptoms, according to the district attorney’s office.
During that visit, a bug reportedly dropped from Aurora’s shoe while another cockroach crawled on her. The girl then told hospital staff, “Oh yeah, bugs just crawl on me.”
Medical personnel also said Aurora smelled of cat urine, looked pale and severely underweight, and complained that she was hungry and had not eaten.
San Jose police officers and firefighters were called to the family’s home on May 13, 2026, after receiving a report of a child experiencing a medical emergency.
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Jacob Randolph, 39, has been charged with felony child neglect in connection with the death of his 8-year-old stepdaughter, the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office said. (San José Police Department)
Social workers removed the couple’s six other children, whose ages ranged from 2 months to 17 years, and placed them in protective custody.
Aurora died four days after first responders arrived at the home, prosecutors said.
The medical examiner concluded that severe asthma and an acute lung injury linked to a viral infection caused Aurora to suffer oxygen deprivation in the brain. Medical neglect was listed as a major contributing factor, and her death was classified as a homicide.
According to investigators, Aurora and her siblings had endured what prosecutors described as “squalid and dangerous conditions” since at least 2019.
Detectives also found that Aurora’s asthma equipment had not been properly cared for. Her prescribed inhaler was missing during two separate searches of the residence.
Gabrielle Hanson, 32, is charged with felony child neglect after the death of her 8-year-old daughter, Aurora Williams, in San Jose, California. (San José Police Department)
Investigators later located a dirty inhaler spacer without the rubber seal intended to keep medication from escaping. They also found cockroaches inside a respiratory mask.
“Another child is needlessly dead in this county, and once again our prosecutors will use every legal tool available to hold those responsible accountable,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said.
Rosen added that while prosecution is necessary after such a tragedy, it does not resolve the broader concerns. “There are serious questions about how this child and her siblings lived in this dangerous squalor for so long,” he said. “For this lost child and the others, our community deserves honest answers and meaningful change.”
The investigation also led to child sexual abuse charges against Aurora’s maternal uncle, Jonathan Hanson, 44, involving another child in the home.
San Jose police and firefighters responded to a home on Lancelot Lane on May 13, 2026, for a medical emergency involving a child who was later declared dead. (Sundry Photography/Getty Images)
Prosecutors charged Jonathan Hanson with two counts of molestation and one count of possessing explicit videos of the alleged victim, who was between 11 and 15 years old at the time of the alleged offenses.
Gabrielle Hanson, the alleged victim’s stepmother, was also charged with knowing about the alleged abuse and failing to intervene, prosecutors said.
All three defendants were arraigned Tuesday.
Gabrielle Hanson and Randolph were released under supervised own recognizance over prosecutors’ objections, while Jonathan Hanson was ordered held without bail.
Their next court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 20 at the Hall of Justice in San Jose.