Andrew Thomas friend Jr called AJ by his family was born on October 14th 2013 at the time his mother Joanne Cunningham was 31 years old his father Andrew Thomas friend senior was 55 he had three siblings his older brother Austin was born in July of 2000 his younger brother was born in December of 2014 and his sister was born in May of 2018 AJ had short blonde hair and bright smile he was smart he loved to have books read to him he also loved completing puzzles and wanted to take a picture to celebrate whenever he

finished one he liked Thomas the Tank Engine the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Legos he liked playing with fire trucks bulldozers and cement mixers he was an affectionate and outgoing little boy that loved his siblings he always looked out for his younger brother his grandmother Lorie Hughes and other members of his family called him a virtual ray of sunshine aent J ‘s mother Joanne was only 16 years old when she had her first son with her High School boyfriend Christopher Butler she dropped out of school and moved in with

Christopher and his parents in McCullum Lake now McCullum lake is a small village of less than 1,000 people in McKenry County Illinois county is about an hour Northwest of Chicago 3 years later their relationship was still struggling Christopher was arrested for punching Joanne in the stomach but Joanne later dropped the charges years afterwards when Austin was 5 years old the couple broke up for good in 2005 Joanne and Austin moved back in with her mother Lori said Joanne was a devoted parent recalling that she spent time

teaching the boy to read and played board games with him Joanne also attended cosmetology school to become a hairdresser 2006 Joanne began dating Craig’s summer camp they got engaged a year later and married in May of 2009 during this time Joanne was suffering from chronic back pain and fibromyalgia and she started taking prescription painkillers in 200 11 she became a licensed foster parent and took in her six-year-old godson raising him alongside her own son a local Pastor provided a letter of reference for her

foster parent application said Craig and Joanne were a caring and loving family and that the couple had extremely good morals however in January of 2012 Craig filed for divorce he said the relationship had been good at first but it changed when Joanne became addicted to prescription pain pills by this time Joanne was taking a mix of hydrocodone Percocet and morphine and she needed up to 15 pills a day the pills caused her to behave erratically Craig alleged that she punched him in the face threw hot coffee on him and tried to push him down

the stairs Joanne accused Craig of assault and filed a protection from abuse order a hearing about the protection order was held at the Woodstock Courthouse after the hearing Joanne met attorney Andrew friends in the hallway outside of the courtroom soon Andrew and Joanne were dating and he became her divorc at attorney unfortunately Andrew also struggled with alcohol and drug abuse he had graduated with his law degree in 1984 and took a job with a Crystal Lake law firm in 1994 he was let go because his addiction to

alcohol was interfering with his ability to work in 2012 he was practicing law out of his home and working part-time as a bagger at a local grocery store soon after meeting Joanne he moved into the home that she shared with Craig Craig had temporarily vacated the home to allow the children to finish the school year during this time Joanne’s drug use got worse and she began having hallucinations she believed among other things that her house was bugged and her neighbor wanted to kill her meanwhile Andrew and Joanne were destroying

Craig’s home and selling his stuff he accused the couple of causing over $20,000 worth of damage he claimed the home stank of dog waste and urine and was infested with mold and insects he also cited major damage caused by fires in the kitchen appliances the Department of Children and Family Service hotline received two calls to their CA Hotline in June of 2012 one came from an anonymous caller and the other one came from a neighbor both calls claimed that Joanne was neglecting her son and Foster son because of her prescription drug

addiction one of the calls led to a formal investigation but the investigation was closed and the claims were listed as unfounded the other call was referred to a foster care case worker who also closed the referral saying there was no evidence of any of the claims by August Joanne moved in with Andrew at 94 Dole Avenue in Crystal Lake Crystal Lake is one of the nicer Chicago suburbs Andrew’s home was a two-story structure with a basement white siding and an attached garage once Joanne moved in the police were

frequently called to the house sometime in August Joanne sent concerning messages to a friend who called the police Joanne also texted Andrew saying and because of YouTube’s rules we have to be careful how we say this she threatened to self checkout with a rope in his house police did find her asleep with a 10-ft red rope next to her bed Michael York was renting the basement of the home when Joanne moved in he was Andrew’s cooworker at the grocery store and had also hired Andrew as his custody attorney in September Michael called the

police while he was at work Joanne and Andrew had pawned some of his stuff without his permission they used the money to purchase vicadin the police arrived but no one was arrested Michael moved out at the end of the month when the caseworker found out Joanne had moved her foster son without alerting DCFS she called the police with their help the caseworker removed him from Joanne’s care she still had custody of her own son Austin now 12 years old according to Joanne’s mother Lori Joanne was paying her legal fees by supplying

Andrew with prescription pills she took Austin with her on the hourlong drives to elorn Wisconsin where she bought pills she was often High while she was driving and Austin told his grandmother he was afraid she would have an accident Austin also told Lori he had seen his mother and Andrew taking pills together he said Andrew would sometimes dress up in an army uniform and walk around with a gun in his hand conditions in the home were Grim often they didn’t have hot water and some sometimes no water at all at the start of the winter they had no

heat sometimes Austin would stay at his grandmother’s house when Lori took the boy back home she would stay for 2 or 3 hours to clean up she’ pick up dog feces wash dishes and gather up Dirty Laundry she would take as many as 10 loads of laundry wreaking of cat yarn back to her home to wash them Austin sometimes went a week without any clean clothes Lorie said her grandson reported there was often no food in the house and he went days without eating days that he did eat he had to cook for himself sometimes marshmallows were the only food in the

house he was sent to school with no food and no lunch money he was also missing school regularly Joanne often left him home alone and went out with friends once when he was quite ill with a strep throat and had a temperature of 102 Austin also witness DV between the adults in the home loud fights between Joanne and Andrew occurred weekly and Drew would push and shove Joanne and Joanne would punch Andrew police reports show that during a fight on October 22nd Joanne threatened Andrew with a knife and he pushed her down the stairs

November of 2012 Joanne and Andrew were both found guilty of criminal contempt the judge in the divorce case had forbidden them from removing any items from Craig’s home despite the warning the couple sold Craig’s Blu-ray player two of his TVs and some of his silverware Andrew was sentenced to for 14 days in McHenry County Jail Joanne was sentenced to 30 days while Joanne was in jail Lori took care of Austin on November 17th Austin’s father Christopher died of a drug overdose his mother was still in jail during her time

at McHenry Joanne befriended a fellow inmate after she got out Joanne lent her bail money this friend would later repay Joanne with Heroin the start of an even more dangerous addiction Joanne was released a few days before Christmas she tried to bring Austin back to the Dole Avenue residence but he didn’t want to go Lorie said Austin told her he would run away if she made him go back there Joanne told Austin that she would un alive herself if he didn’t come back when Austin wouldn’t leave with her Joanne called the police according to

the report Austin stated he loved his mom but didn’t want to go live with her because of her drug addiction the police left but made Austin promise to go back to his mom’s for Christmas Day the next day Christmas Eve Lori called DCFS she reported Joanne for neglect and drug use the agency conducted an investigation and closed the case stating her claims were unfounded in January of 2013 Lori petitioned the court asking for custody of Austin Joanne and Andrew were struggling Andrew had suffered a stroke and his law license had been revoked

because he didn’t complete the proper paperwork he was also hurt at work when a service elevator fell and crushed his hand Joanne was arrested three times in June and July for retail theft she was collecting discarded receipts and using them to return items she shoplifted Andrew was arrested as well he was hiding stolen items in his shorts and compression socks by this time they were both using heroin they were so broke that they were earning money by recycling empty soda cans and ammunition casings on one occasion Joanne accused

Andrew of stealing some of the $18 they had earned recycling fight got physical a friend called police after witnessing Jo-Anne repeatedly punching Andrew who already had a black eye from an earlier incident she was charged and later convicted of battery she was required to attend anger management classes and to participate in a drug treatment program this was the family AJ was born into on October 14th 2013 at cgra hospital in Woodstock AJ was delivered via an emergency C-section nurses noted fresh track marks on Joan ‘s body blood tests

from his umbilical cord showed signs of opiates and benzo diazines in his system according to hospital records AJ was suffering from withdrawal he was crying too much and unable to sleep he was also shaking sneezing and he had an overactive stle reflex Joanne told Hospital staff she had taken three medications for anxiety and pain the day AJ was born she also admitted to using heroin but she said she stopped as soon as she found out that she was pregnant on October 16th DCFS launched an investigation on behalf of AJ a few days

later on October 21st Lori finally won her custody battle for Austin the case had taken months and she had to pay thousands of dollars in legal fees but she was able to take her oldest grandson home she begged the nurses to help AJ telling them there was no way Joanne and Andrew could care for a baby doctors gave AJ morphine to treat his withdrawal he was kept in the hospital until mid November Joanne and Andrew were not allowed to take him home he was placed in foster care with one of Joanne’s cousins AJ’s Foster mother said he was an easy baby

at a checkup in early December he was developing normally although he still suffered from Tremors occasionally his foster mother wanted to adopt the little boy however the primary goal of DCFS is to reunite families when possible so she understood she was not going to be able to adopt him about a week after AJ went home with his father Foster mother Joanne overdosed on heroin and ended up back in the hospital neither Joanne nor Andrew attempted to see AJ during scheduled visitations at all during November or December in January 2014 the

couple met with a case worker to start the process of getting AJ back both Joanne and Andrew agreed to participate in parenting classes in a drug treatment program with methodo maintenance they also agreed to attend one-on-one counseling at first they were only allowed to see AJ once a week they asked for unsupervised visits with AJ but the request was denied in July the judge still worried about their sobriety AJ turned one while still in foster care he was growing into a healthy toddler twice a week his foster mother took him to

gymnastics in the library he struggled during visits with his parents records from the time State he threw fits and wouldn’t let anyone comfort him Andrew and Joanne were still renting out the basement of their home advertising in it as a sober living space to people they met in group therapy police were called three times because of problems with the renters but no arrests were made their case worker told them their home would be more suitable for AJ’s return if they stopped renting the basement out they stopped this meant they lost the rental

income Andrew still wasn’t able to practice as an attorney he was getting a disability payment for his hand injury and Joanne sometimes worked part-time as a hairdresser but money was tight although Andrew owned their home they owed about $25,000 in back taxes Joanne was also pregnant again December of 2014 they had their second son no traces of drugs were found in his system worried about possible eviction because of the back taxes Joanne and Andrew set up a GoFundMe account where they posted pictures of AJ and his new brother their

case worker made them take it down and said they should be using more traditional methods to get help they turned to the church the Salvation Army and also got some funding from DCFS in April they were approved for overnight visits with AJ but they weren’t allowed to bring him home his time in foster care was extended by an additional 6 months the couple continued to follow their treatment program AJ adjusted to their visits he was hitting all of his developmental goals in May his foster mother told the casew worker she’d like

to be a part of his life once he returned home after 18 months in foster care AJ was returned to his parents on June 12th 2015 the couple continued their treatment with suboxone a drug that helps addict stay sober they continued to pass their random drug screens and they enrolled both boys in a preschool program in addition they took AJ to the doctor when he had regular childhood illnesses like pink eye Andrew even got his law license restored after AJ’s return DCFS made 26 visits to the home on February 25th 2016 AJ had a long

one-on-one meeting with his case worker she she found no reason for concern on April 12th DCFS closed the case AJ was almost 2 and 1/2 years old it seemed like a happy ending in the fall of 2017 the Happy Endings started to fall apart the house was sold to pay for the back taxes the new owner was allowing the family to stay but was charging them rent which they were not paying Joanne let her cosmetology license expire she didn’t enroll AJ in school she also pulled away from her relatives she emailed AJ’s former Foster mother telling her that AJ

acted up after she visited she told her not to come back Joanne stopped returning the phone calls of other relatives she was angry at her mother who still had custody of Austin she wouldn’t let any family visit the boys she took the boys trick-or-treating on Halloween where she then met their new neighbor Janelle Butler AJ was dressed up as a mummy which seemed like a cute costume until Janelle realized the gauze was only partially covering his burned head she could see patches of missing hair on AJ’s head Joanne told her that

AJ had burned himself with a pot of burning water she said she took him to the doctor but that seems very unlikely because no record of any doctor’s visit for AJ exists in February 2018 Joanne and Andrew rented out the basement again this time to Dan no wikii Joanne met him in a drug treatment program he had been in and out of jail since 2004 and had a long history of drug abuse his drug of choice was heroin on February 16th Joanne called the police to report her new roommate missing she referred to Dan as a friend and described the tattoos

and piercings all over his face she was concerned that he might hurt himself she had checked the hospitals and detox centers and could not find him when police check back she said he had called on February 19th he was in a Hospital in Chicago receiving mental health treatment it is unclear exactly when their relationship changed but by March 17th Joanne told police officers that Dan was her boyfriend after the two caus a disturbance in a gas station parking lot Dan told police he didn’t want to deal with Joanne’s children’s father

anymore however Joanne told police she was trying to keep Dan from going to the city to buy drugs sequently the police gave Dan a ride and left Joanne behind a few days later Joanne was passed out in her car in North Lake 40 m away from her home paramedics rushed her to the emergency room at gly Memorial Hospital she claimed that someone must have drugged her drink but the nurses saw fresh track marks on her arms feet and neck she refused to take a drug test Andrew brought both boys to the hospital staff noted that the children were dirty

and their clothes were on backwards reports know that AJ had odd bruising on his face and forehead and DCFS was notified on March 21st a casew worker tried to make contact that day but she went to the wrong house she went to the home Joanne shared with her ex-husband in 2012 she tried again on March 29th and April 9th but no one answered the door or her phone calls finally on April 25th the DCFS investigator met with Joanne and the boys they played in the driveway while Joanne was being interviewed she observed the boys were

clean and showed no signs of being mistreated the one- Monon delay had given AJ’s bruises time to heal nothing in her notes showed that she ever asked about the bruises after a followup meeting in May she and her supervisor Andrew pivan decided the allegations were unfounded in July Joanne was hospitalized in the psychiatric WS of two different Chicago hospitals according to medical records she told the staff that she was depressed and thinking about walking in front of a bus she admitted that she was using up to 15 bags of heroin a day she

was also charged with battery for scratching one of the nurses while being treated on August 5th police responded to a call alleging the theft of prescription drugs Dan was back at the Dole Avenue Home Police noted that he and Joanne both appeared to be on narcotics when they arrived Joanne told the police a story that didn’t make much sense she said she had been walking around her neighborhood with her medication in her backpack somehow she woke in her bed not knowing how she got there and found that some of her pills

had been stolen from her backpack Dan wanted the officers to give him the police report number one of the responding officers was experienced with prescription pill theft reports and noted that in order to have a prescription filled again they would need a police report number some individuals would sell their pills and then report them stolen in order to be able to fill the prescription again he thought that was a likely explanation on September 20th police were called to do a welfare check on the children because the power was out and

the home was in a dilapidated State Police found overgrown grass almost two 2 ft High the paint was peeling off the house and the windows were falling apart JoAnn said the power had been out for a while and she was trying to find another place to live DCFS was contacted but they wouldn’t investigate because of utility issue now in November Joanne was living in a Palatine hotel with Dan Dan called the police to report she wouldn’t let him get his stuff from the hotel room no arrests were made and the police report doesn’t mention AJ or his younger

brother by December she was living with Andrew again and she was pregnant with Dan’s child on December 18th Joanne drove to a nearby Taco Bell and asked employees to call 911 AJ and his brother were in the backseat of the car she met officers in the parking lot and told them Dan had entered her home demanded money and stolen her cell phone and prescription pills said Dan was living at Dole Avenue but he had not been home for a week police entered the home to see if Dan was there and he was not he did find Dan however he was on a street

nearby his multiple face tattoos would have made him very hard to miss he said Joanne was trying to take his medication police searched Dan and didn’t find any of Joanne’s items they arrested Joanne for driving with a suspended license with her two kids in the car police noted that AJ was wearing nothing but a pull-up diaper and he had a large bruise on his leg the officer who had searched for Dan at the Dole Avenue residence found the home inadequate for two young children noting dog urine and feces located throughout the home according to

the police report it was in terrible shape the house was full of garbage the flooring and the kitchen was Jagged and broken off some areas only had subflooring the ceiling had water damage one of the doors was covered in an unidentifiable Brown substance the window in the boy’s bedroom was opened but despite it being open the room still smelled overwhelmingly of feces officers installed two car seats in their police car and they took Joanne and the kids to the station they placed a hot line Report with DCFS now both boys were

interviewed at the police station by DCFS investigator Carlos aosta the younger boy would not talk but he appeared healthy and well care for AJ was interviewed and with his mother in the room said the large bruise came from the family dog pawing at him while he watched the movie Polar Express the night before Joanne said they were in the middle of remodeling admitted that the home smelted like dog feces and urine Andrew posted her bonds and she was released from custody aosta said she and Andrew could take the

children home as long as they promised to take AJ to the ER the doctor at the ER said the bruise could have been caused by a dog a belt or football however she spoke to AJ alone without his mother there he told her maybe someone hit me with a belt Maybe Mommy didn’t mean to hurt me she found this very concerning and thought any additional interview should be conducted by someone trained to deal with CA cases she also thought AJ should be examined by a pediatrician instead aosta chose to release the boys to Andrew the next day

aosta made an unannounced home visit he was not as appalled by the conditions as the police had been the day before his report noted that the living room and dining room were cluttered with toys he found the kitchen was clean but was missing floor tiles he did note a light smell of urine but no visible dog feces he interviewed Andrew who said they use no corporal punishment Andrew also said Joanne was not using drugs both statements were likely untrue but aosta believed him then aosta consulted his supervisor pivan and together they

decided to close this case as unfounded Dan who had been convicted of battery in an unrelated case to the family went to jail near the end of December leaving Joanne and Andrew alone in the house with the children on October 18th 2019 Andrew called 911 he told the dispatcher they had a missing child his tone throughout the call is distant and disturbing it takes him a long time to even say AJ’s name and even longer to admit that he Andrew was AJ’s father police released the audio of the 911 call which will play for you right

now 911 what’s you address of your emergency hey tell me exactly what happened um we uh you a missing child um woke up this morning and uh wasn’t he wasn’t how old is the child yeah missing child yeah how old is he he’s five what was he last scen wear um a Mario uh like blue long sleeve sweatshirt and a black sweatpant and is he a male white yes and when was the last time you seen him uh last night night uh probably 9:30 uh when he went to bed okay are you the father Yes you know where he met have went no um we Kansas the neighborhood I

went to the local park um local gas station down here where we sometimes take him to buy treats um I spoke with the assisting principal over there at the school where the park is and they they haven’t seen uh him or any other child I I have no idea where he would be okay so you put him to bed last night so he was in his pajamas and then when you Che to get him for school he wasn’t there and then you looked around for a bit yes have you checked everywhere like under tables or in closets closets the basement the

garage everywhere was any of the doors open no I mean you know no outside doors or anything like that doors and windows no officer’s pH on door now okay yeah I see him AJ was described as having short blonde hair he was 3′ 5 in and 70 lb he was wearing a blue Mario sweatshirt and black sweatpants he 5 years old within minutes police arrived with train search dogs they search the entire property but all the scent Trails the dogs could pick up LED back to the house AJ’s 3-year-old brother was removed while search was

underway he was initially placed with a foster parent and then placed with a relative the younger boy showed no sign of injury or neglect still unsure if AJ had wandered away or was kidnapped police searched areas a few miles from the family home team searched veteran Acres Park in around Sterns Woods Illinois State Police searched by plane and and also use sonar equipment to search bodies of water in the area local residents search their neighborhoods checking window wells backyards playhouses and playgrounds Andrew

volunteered to take a lie detector test both Joanne and Andrew went on TV to plead for the return of their little boy I just want my kids that’s all I have that’s my life for my kids the boy’s parents say they last Saw AJ when they put him to bed Wednesday night his mother maintains her innocence but has hired an attorney and is refusing to cooperate with police I realized that uh the police um uh considered her to be a suspect based on that I advised mingham uh uh to to to remain silent at that point after using

Sonar to search a nearby lake and K9 units police say they have so far only picked up AJ sent inside the resident investigators do not believe the boy was abducted or wandered away AJ’s father met with police over the weekend AJ please come home we love you very much police focus on the house treating it as a crime scene they reported finding mouse droppings throughout the house they also found mouse droppings in the converted crib that AJ slept in they also noted a sliding lock and chain outside of the door the lock was positioned in a way to

lock someone inside of the room the house was dirty and cluttered with open food lying around according to to the DCFS report clothes and garbage were everywhere half the kitchen floor was still missing and it had been 4 months earlier when Joanne said they were doing renovations with the search for AJ still ongoing authorities remove evidence from the home among other items they removed a child’s mattress a shovel four empty bottles of bleach and a pair of men’s shoes covered in mud on April 24th police showed Andrew the evidence they

had gathered including videos of AJ taken from Joanne’s cell phone Andrew confessed blaming Joanne for the little boy’s death he said he had asked Joanne to stop the hard physical beatings and the two of them had decided together to use cold showers as a punishment instead Andrew admitted to personally spanking the little boy but denied any other mistreatment he explained they both believed AJ had Oppositional Defiant Disorder as an example Andrew mentions the time when AJ told the lie about stacking some dishes the wrong way after

washing them OD is a serious disorder that many families struggle with however AJ had not been professionally diagnosed with it the behavior Andrew described wasn’t anything like it typically children with the disorder show angry hurtful and revengeful behavior that occurs frequently and lasts more than 6 months police also showed Andrew a photo that was taken and stored on his phone on April 17th photo was of a shopping list this list included duct tape plastic gloves an air freshener and bleach Andrew admitted he wrapped AJ’s

body in several trash bags and put it in a large plastic tote he placed the tote in the basement 2 days later he drove to a rural section of Woodstock and dug a shallow grave he led police location and they did find AJ Barry there Andrew and Joanne were both charged with first-degree homicide aggravated battery of a child concealment of a homicidal death failure to report a death aggravated domestic battery Reckless conduct and causing a child to be endangered Joanne was still proclaiming her innocence in a channel 2 special

investigation she wept and said she didn’t kill her little boy the investigation aired on September 26 she said she would never hurt AJ or anyone she said they were a good and loving family she blamed Andrew saying if he did something he needs to tell them so everyone else isn’t suffering she also told the reporter she was pregnant with Dan’s child and that Dan was supposed to be released from prison on the morning AJ was reported missing police got a subpoena to access Joanne’s iCloud account and were able to recover

two very disturbing videos in a video taken on March 4th AJ held an ice pack over his eye neath the ice pack his eye was severely swollen and bruised he was wearing only a pull-up diaper in line on the bare mattress of his bed wounds and bruises were visible on his arms and wrists Joanne can be heard screaming at him for wetting the bed the March 27th video was shot in the bathroom AJ had visible cut some bruises Joanne backed him into a corner and asked him about getting her in trouble with someone as she referred to it she pushed him

against the wall still yelling at him till he was choking for air throughout the little boy seems like he’s on the verge of tears he does not seem angry he seems scared understandably during this video AJ said he loves his family and Joanne tells him that he doesn’t show it throughout Joanne sounded completely unhinged she repeatedly cursed at AJ she accused him of casting evil spells on her and trying to manipulate his dad she tells him his dad would never pick him over her she put her face very close to AJ’s and asked if anyone else in the

house does evil the little boy said no just me after AJ’s disappearance his younger brother was interviewed by the County’s Child Advocacy Center he said his mother told him AJ fell down the stairs and had a lot of AES in another interview he said he was afraid of two things the dark and his mother on December 5th 2019 after police showed her the recovered videos and other evidence Joanne pled guilty to first-degree homicide as part of her deal she had to testify about what happened to AJ according to Joanne on

the evening of April 15th she put AJ in a cold shower as punishment for hiding a pair of soiled underwear she said she kept him in the shower for 20 minutes more than once she took the spray nozzle and put it right in his face sometimes the spray caused AJ to lose his balance and fall in the tub she said Andrew removed the little boy from the shower and put him to bed AJ was still cold wet and naked at around 3: in the morning Joanne checked on AJ and found him dead she said Andrew used his phone to perform Google searches about child CPR

at 317 a.m. forensic pathologist Mark Whit from the McHenry counter Corner’s office conducted AJ’s autopsy he testified about his findings at Joanne’s sentencing hearing he found pattern and circular bruises on his forehead that could have come from the detachable shower head there were multiple bruises and abrasions all over AJ’s arms and legs there were also red bruises caused by blunt force trauma to his butt he found evidence of an old injury to the little boy’s rib it had been broken in the past and showed signs of healing he

also concluded that AJ did not die of hypothermia or from a fall he died from massive trauma to the skull and brain that was caused by multiple blunt force trauma to the head he also found evidence of at least a dozen blunt force trauma blows to AJ’s head maybe more because the blows were overlapping it was hard to count them with complete accuracy his head would have been very swollen at the time of his death his brain was so swollen part of it swelled into his spinal cord crushing his brain tissue both of his lungs had leopard spots

caused by inhaled blood corer Whit explained this probably happened while AJ was unconscious from the beating the injuries would have been painful while they were happening mercifully the pain would have stopped when he lost Consciousness for his role in AJ’s death Andrew pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter aggravated battery of a child and concealment of a homicidal death he pled guilty on September 18th 2020 Joanne was sentenced to 35 years for first-degree homicide Andrew was sentenced to 30 years 11 years for

aggravated battery of a child 14 years for involuntary manslaughter and 5 years for concealment of a homicidal death Andrew sentences will be served consecutively Joanne gave birth to a daughter while at McKenry County Jail the infant born May 31st was placed in foster care with Joanne’s family the baby’s father Dan died of a suspected drug overdose 4 month months after her birth on September 29th 2019 Joann’s youngest son was placed in foster care with her cousin the same person who was AJ’s Foster mother during

the first 18 months of his life she is now legally the mother of the younger boy and is said she would gladly taken ajn as well on September 11th 2023 two DCFS workers went on trial for ignoring multiple red flags that could have prevented AJ’s death former case worker Carlos aosta and former supervisor Andrew pivan were charged with endangering a child’s life and Reckless conduct they returned AJ to an unsafe home where he was killed the two were being tried together now this is a very rare circumstance normally with cases we

cover DCFS case workers social workers anyone who is negligent in cases such as these are rarely charged according to testimony police reported serious problems at the home on multiple occasions they were ignored by DCFS evidence was presented of 17 police visits Over The Last 5 Years police noted unacceptable living conditions concerns for the welfare of the children and significant drug use Crystal Lake police officer Kimberly BBA described deplorable living conditions in the home she also testified about the

bruise AJ suffered on December 18th she said the mother prompted him to blame the family dog in her opinion there was no way a dog could have caused such an injury Pamela Wells an attorney who specializes in CA cases testify that they should have placed AJ into protective custody and conducted additional investigations they also should have worked to provide counseling and other services to the family such Services had helped the family before and would have allowed DCFS to regularly monitor AJ in October of 2023 Carlos

aosta was found guilty of child endangerment but was acquitted of Reckless conduct however Lake County Judge George Strickland could not find Andrew poan guilty of either charge because he did not know how much pan knew about the extent of the abuse that AJ had endured AJ was buried in a pair of Superman pajamas close to 5,000 people came to the Davenport Funeral Home on May 3rd 2019 to pay their respects people from around the state and around the country sent flowers the Chicago Cubs sent a large flower arrangement in October of 2019 community

members held a memorial walk for AJ 6’s birthday they wore blue in his memory and celebrated his short life with balloons cupcakes Bubbles and they sang Happy Birthday the house where he died was torn down on March 4th 2020 was demolished in under an hour his foster mother who asked to remain unidentified released the following statement about AJ and I quote we the family that lovingly cared for AJ during the first 18 months of his life and were then allowed to be in his life for another 26 months until the parents abruptly

prevented us from having any further contact with him want everyone to know that AJ was loved by us with all our hearts while we had him in our lives he had a happy funloving life he was will always be our loving and caring little boy with his Brave short life AJ made the ultimate sacrifice to save his younger brother and unborn sibling his life shall not be in vain AJ will always be our little superhero