Franklin Elmore Jr. (left) and Cheyenne Elmore (Indiana County Jail Public Portal).
An Indiana couple was charged with murder days after they were arrested in connection with the death of their 6-year-old son.
Franklin Elmore Jr., 29, and Cheyenne Elmore, 27, were both arrested on Aug. 8 after they brought their 6-year-old son to the hospital days before. According to a Facebook post by the Elkhart County Prosecutor”s Office, Franklin Elmore — the boy’s father — claimed to hospital staff that his son “hit himself” before becoming unresponsive. Hospital staff told police that the boy had injuries that were too severe for him to have inflicted upon himself, which allegedly included a “traumatic brain injury and a punctured lung.” The boy later died at the hospital.
The prosecutor stated that after further investigation, it was discovered that Cheyenne Elmore — the boy’s stepmother — had “complained” about the boy’s behavior to her husband.
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Prosecutors learned from the couple that on the night of Aug. 3, Franklin and Cheyenne Elmore were in their home’s “playroom” with the boy when Franklin Elmore “attacked” him. According to court documents obtained by local NBC affiliate WNDU, the couple called 911 after the boy became unresponsive and told medical staff that the boy would hit himself in the head, a purported symptom of his behavioral issues.
WNDU reported that ER medical staff and a trauma surgeon at Elkhart General Hospital spoke with investigators and told them they did not believe the boy’s injuries were self-inflicted. Police searched the Elmores’ phones, which allegedly revealed several photos of the boy with visible bruises and other injuries.
More from Law&Crime: Dad, stepmom were ‘working in tandem’ to torture and kill 8-year-old, scalding her and crushing her hands: Police
Both Elmores allegedly admitted to police that they disciplined the boy by forcing him to exert himself through physical exercise. They also allegedly admitted that they would “whoop” him with a belt or with their hands. Neighbors who spoke to police reportedly stated that they saw the boy doing those exercises in the family’s yard.
According to WNDU, the boy’s biological mother, who lives in Alabama, had raised concerns about the welfare of her son and called Indiana’s Department of Child Services. However, authorities there reportedly told her “they could do nothing because they didn’t find any bruises.” The boy’s mother had also reported comments her son made to her about “going to bed hungry at night when he gets in trouble.”
The mother filed formal reports with the department, which responded that there was nothing to investigate. In a statement to WNDU, the department said, “DCS has reviewed its records in order to determine if there are non-confidential and responsive records and if the agency is statutorily authorized to release those records.” DCS added, “We do not have statutory authority to release any records related to [the boy], due to an ongoing police investigation or criminal prosecution.”
Franklin and Cheyenne Elmore are both charged with murder and are being held in custody without bail. They are both due in court again on Aug. 14.
