An Indiana mother and her partner face serious allegations of bringing a 3-year-old girl to the brink of death, purportedly inflicting such severe abuse that the child was left with bruises covering most of her body.

Court records indicate that Kami Nelson, 23, and Lee E. O’Donnell Jr., 25, have been charged with neglect of a dependent resulting in catastrophic injury, as well as neglect leading to serious bodily harm.

The troubling case emerged after a distress call in the early hours of March 25, when authorities were summoned to an Airbnb on Broad Street in New Castle, following reports of a child found unresponsive, according to The Star Press reported.

First responders arrived to discover the toddler in a critical state, unclothed and struggling to breathe. Investigative reports detailed by the Star Press describe the child as being “black and blue with bruises nearly all over her bare body,” appearing to be the victim of a brutal beating, as per the probable cause affidavit.

Despite the dire scene, emergency crews administered vital medical interventions before transporting the girl to a nearby hospital. She was subsequently flown to Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, where medical professionals confirmed the injuries were significantly more severe than initially assessed.

Medical staff reported the child was “critically ill” and “in shock” after suffering severe abdominal trauma that required emergency surgery, The Courier-Times reported. According to hospital findings, the girl sustained lacerations and tears to her intestines, internal bleeding, and acute kidney injury requiring dialysis.

“The report indicated there were no signs of a medical condition contributing to these nor is there a medical condition that would cause spontaneous injury to the intestines as seen in Juvenile Victim 1,” investigators wrote in the affidavit.

“Without medical intervention, these findings would likely have been fatal and Juvenile Victim 1 still remains in critical condition with a guarded prognosis. The only accidental history provided at this time by caregivers is that the child sleepwalks, which would not be consistent with these abdominal injuries,” the document continued. “At this time, Juvenile Victim 1’s overall constellation of findings including . . . diffuse bruising, soft tissue injuries, and abdominal injuries is characteristic of non accidental/inflicted trauma (child physical abuse).”

As detectives began piecing together what led to the injuries, Nelson allegedly had initially told police her daughter had been sleepwalking and may have been “walking into door handles and similar items.” She also claimed the child had been sick and vomiting in the days leading up to the incident and said she delayed seeking medical care because she had just started a new job and lacked insurance.

O’Donnell, who had been caring for the children while Nelson worked, reportedly gave a starkly different account while showing “little to no emotion” during his interview with detectives.

He told investigators Nelson had a volatile temper and described her as a “manipulative liar,” alleging she would become physical with the child “once a day, multiple times a day sometimes.” He also claimed he witnessed her strike the child and grab her face while she was eating.

According to investigators, O’Donnell admitted he was reluctant to report the alleged abuse “because I don’t want to end up homeless.”

Nelson, for her part, initially denied O’Donnell could have caused the injuries but later changed her account, telling police she believed he may have been responsible and was trying to “save himself.”

Authorities said both suspects ultimately blamed one another for the child’s condition.

Investigators also uncovered additional troubling details inside the rental home and reportedly found drug paraphernalia and a second young child staying at the residence at the time.

O’Donnell was arrested after allegedly failing to appear for a scheduled polygraph test on March 27. He was stopped on Interstate 70 later that day and taken into custody. Nelson was arrested the same day the child was discovered.

The toddler reportedly remains hospitalized with life-threatening injuries while both defendants are being held in the Henry County Jail on $191,000 surety bonds, records show. They are scheduled to return to court for pretrial hearings on June 11.

A dramatic pursuit unfolded in Florida when a man attempting to evade police jumped into a river, only to be captured by officers on paddleboards.

The incident took place on March 16 when Florida police approached Chase Cruz regarding alleged trespassing at a vacant property. Cruz, rather than cooperating, took off on foot, as detailed in an arrest affidavit obtained by Oxygen. He dashed through several backyards until he reached the banks of the Halifax River.

While one officer pursued him on land, two others quickly commandeered surfboards from Volusia County Beach Safety and paddled out to intercept him, according to the affidavit.

The Volusia Sheriff’s Office shared dramatic footage on Instagram, capturing the moment officers surrounded Cruz in the water. The video showed him floating with his arms extended in a gesture of surrender.

Before being secured to a paddleboard and brought back to shore, Cruz reportedly pleaded with the officers, saying, “Don’t hurt me,” as noted in the affidavit.

Chase was booked into the Volusia County Division of Corrections and charged with loitering or prowling and obstructing an officer without violence. He was released on March 29. 

The 28-year-old acknowledged that he was wrong, police noted in the doc, and “agreed to accept the consequences of his actions.” Chase formally pleaded no contest, according to court records viewed by Oxygen, and he was sentenced to 15 days in jail (with credit for five days served) and 15 hours of community service.

Chase alleged he is homeless and had been sleeping in his car at the vacant residence for two days, per the affidavit, adding that a neighbor assured him that he wouldn’t be bothered there. Chase said, per the affidavit, that he ran because he is afraid of the police. 

An attorney for Chase did not immediately reply to a request for comment from Oxygen.

A man from Texas is facing murder charges following the alleged killing of his girlfriend, whose body is believed to have been discarded in Oklahoma. This tragic case has drawn considerable attention as authorities work to piece together the events leading up to her disappearance.

Molly Richards vanished in November 2025, triggering an investigation by the Little Elm Police Department. Concern for Molly’s wellbeing arose when her father, Steven Richards, reported her missing, according to a report from WFAA.

The last communication Steven Richards received from his daughter was in November, when Molly informed him via text message that she and her boyfriend, Christopher Charles Sanders, were planning a trip to South Dakota. In a subsequent message on December 1, she mentioned checking into a mental health facility to address her bipolar disorder. After these messages, Molly went silent, and repeated attempts by her father to contact Sanders yielded no response.

As investigators delved deeper, they discovered that Molly’s vehicle had been involved in a minor accident in South Dakota during November. A local witness recounted that Sanders had requested him to keep an eye on Molly’s vehicle while he purportedly took her to a doctor in Rapid City. This witness also noted that Sanders had left his own vehicle at a hotel and flown back to Texas, only to return a week later to retrieve his car.

Sanders reportedly shared with the witness that Molly had met someone in Deadwood and expressed a desire to remain with this person in Rapid City. As the investigation continues, authorities are striving to uncover the truth behind Molly Richards’ disappearance and the circumstances surrounding her untimely death.

Little Elm Police said in the affidavit that they checked motels, hotels, hospitals, and mental health facilities in the area but found no mention of Richards. They obtained a search warrant for her car and said they found a strong odor of cleaning products inside.

Then, the affidavit said, Richards’ phone, which had been off for weeks, reactivated and pinged near Sanders’ home. Less than a week later, a woman who was watching Sanders’ dogs at his home found several items belonging to her, including her driver’s license, bank and credit cards, a laptop, and unopened mail.

After that, investigators began watching Sanders and eventually executed search warrants on properties he owned in Denton and Little Elm. That’s when they found bedding with blood residue on it and a receipt from Lowe’s for the purchase of a bow saw, 10 five-gallon buckets, a tamper, a reciprocating saw, and gloves. The tools were not found.

Authorities say they believe Richards was killed around November 25, The Independent reported.

Sanders was arrested on March 7 in Marietta, Oklahoma, as he was returning to Texas from South Dakota. Sanders also owns property there, and investigators say they reconstructed the route of his vehicle as he traveled through Oklahoma en route to South Dakota on November 27.

They found he was near his property in Marietta for a little over an hour and believe he likely disposed of Richards’ body on or near his property during that time, the affidavit said.

Sanders has since been returned to Texas and is being held without bail.