From left: William McCue and Carina McCue (Gwinnett County Police) and Zowey McCue (Crowell Brothers Funeral Home).
A harrowing case emerged in Georgia where a 51-year-old man was found guilty of years-long child abuse, culminating in the tragic death of his 10-year-old daughter. The young girl, unable to escape a house fire, lost her life after being confined to sleep on a plywood sheet in a bathtub.
William McCue has been sentenced to three consecutive life terms without parole, plus an additional life sentence and 120 years, for the murder of his daughter, Zowey McCue. A jury convicted him on charges including felony murder, two counts of rape and incest, and three counts of aggravated child molestation, as reported by the Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office.
His wife, 42-year-old Carina McCue, admitted to charges of first-degree cruelty to children, aggravated assault, and false imprisonment. In exchange for her testimony against William McCue, she received a 90-year prison sentence.
The tragic fire occurred on April 17, 2022, at the McCues’ residence in Loganville, about 35 miles from Atlanta. Carina was able to save her 12- and 8-year-old sons but couldn’t reach Zowey, who was trapped in a bathroom without windows, which served as her makeshift bedroom. The child’s death was attributed to smoke inhalation.
At the time of the fire, William McCue was not present at the home.
The oldest McCue son, who was 15 at the time, testified that he set the fire at the home to escape the abuse his parents inflicted upon him and his siblings.
According to testimony, the children were beaten, forced to wear shock collars and had to stand naked on cinder blocks for hours or even days at a time.
“They were not allowed to use the toilets but instead Lowe’s buckets that were emptied once a week and they were never enrolled in school nor homeschooled,” prosecutors wrote. “Evidence showed that the children flourished once they were away from their parents, although they were developmentally and educationally years behind their respective ages.”
Carina McCue testified that her husband admitted to her that he had been sexually assaulting their oldest daughter, then 17, for years.
Jurors handed down a guilty verdict after about four hours of deliberation.
“The treatment of these children was horrible,” District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said in a statement. “This child’s death was unconscionable and preventable, and she and her siblings deserved better than they received from their parents.”
Zowey’s obituary shows she died just three days after celebrating her 10th birthday.
“Zowey enjoyed playing with Legos, playing house, board games, coloring, drawing, throwing the frisbee, playing outside, riding her bike, swimming and jumping on the trampoline. Zowey was a loving little girl, who loved to help with anything she could,” the obituary reads. “At a young age she was so involved with learning as much as she could. She was a princess and to her family she was their little ‘lady bug.’ Her infectious smile was known and her heart was so giving to many.”