MADISON VIOLET DODSON - 15 Months - Fayette County (S of Pittsburgh) PA

A mother and father were charged with homicide in the death of their
15-month-old girl who used a feeding tube and was found starved to death
in a home filled with animal and human feces, police said.
Robert David Dodson, 55, and Tammy Jo Bohon, 35, were
charged Thursday after the body of Madison Violet Dodson was found in
their Fayette County home. The couple's other seven children who lived
in the trash-strewn home, where one room was filled with dirty clothes
and toys, were placed in protective custody.
Madison had a medical condition that required her to use a
gastric feeding tube, though authorities didn't provide details of her
illness. An autopsy determined the girl died of starvation and dehydration.
"This is a tragic situation as well as a tragic death of a 15-month-old,"
District Attorney Jack R. Heneks Jr. said.
Dodson called police to the family's home early Thursday morning
and told a 911 dispatcher that Madison wasn't breathing. She was
pronounced dead at the home.
Authorities who arrived at the home to investigate found the
house strewn with cigarette butts, dirty clothes and piles of full trash
bags. Several cats lived in the house, and the family appeared to sleep
on bare mattresses on the floor, investigators said.
Dodson and Bohon were being held at the Fayette County Prison on
charges of criminal homicide and endangering the welfare of a child.

A Fayette County couple is in jail accused of the murder of their 15-month-old daughter.
State police at Uniontown charged Robert David Dodson, 55, and Tammy
Jo Bohon, 35, of 601 Morgantown St., Point Marion, with criminal
homicide and endangering the welfare of children in the death of Madison
Violet Dodson.
Police believe Dodson called 911 about 5:30 a.m. Thursday and
reported that Madison was unresponsive in the living room. The child had
health problems and required a feeding tube.
During a news conference at the state police barracks near Uniontown
yesterday afternoon, Trooper Scott Kroftcheck said the child was found
dead at home.
District Attorney Jack Heneks Jr. said he supported filing of charges
based on preliminary autopsy findings and preliminary state police
investigations.
Pittsburgh pathologist Cyril Wecht performed the autopsy in Allegheny
County. Although laboratory results will not be available for several
weeks, Heneks said preliminary findings indicate Madison died from a
combination of dehydration and malnutrition, with secondary causes that
he did not explain.
Heneks said homicide charges can include intentional, knowingly
reckless or an unintentional cause of death. "We believe their conduct
led to the death of Madison," Heneks said.
The police investigation, Heneks said, indicated "a lack of the
presence of the natural parents during most of the last day. They are
the natural parents and caretakers. This is a tragedy."
Lead investigator Trooper Timothy Kirsch said police found the
residence "unkempt, with clothing throughout and cats coming in and out
of the kitchen cabinets. There were animal and human feces and dirty
diapers in the residence. There were no trash cans, only trash bags.
Some of them had burst open. One room was full of dirty clothes. The
beds were only box springs and mattresses, no linens. The toilets and
showers were unclean."
In addition to Madison, Kirsch said seven other children, from age 3
to 16 years, all natural children of Dodson and Bohon, lived in the
house. They have been placed in the care of Children and Youth Services.
"Our concern was getting them to safety," Kirsch said.
On-call District Judge Ronald Haggerty Jr. arraigned Dodson and Bohon
on the charges. Haggerty denied bond and both were placed in the
Fayette County Jail.

As 15-month-old Madison Violet Dodson fought for her life while
lying on a floor in a filthy home in Point Marion, her mother was
smoking crack cocaine and sleeping it off at a friend's house, state police allege.
Madison, a special-needs child who was malnourished and dehydrated,
was found dead Thursday morning, Fayette County authorities said.
Her mother, Tammy Jo Bohon, 35, told police she left the baby
Wednesday with her siblings — seven children ages 3 to 16 — to visit a
friend, even though Madison's feeding tube had become dislodged,
according to a police affidavit.
Madison's father, Robert D. Dodson, 55, told police he came home that
evening, rigged up a replacement for the feeding tube, placed the child
on the living room floor, and went to bed.
Bohon and Robert Dodson are charged with criminal homicide in the
baby's death. Their other children are under the care of Children and
Youth Services.
"Bohon said she did not plan on being gone long and she figured she
would take Madison to the hospital later. Bohon related that she ended
up smoking crack (cocaine) with a male friend in Masontown and then fell
asleep," Trooper Timothy Kirsch wrote in an affidavit.
Police responded to the house at 601 Morgantown St. about 5:30 a.m.
Thursday, when Dodson telephoned 911 to report the child was unresponsive.
The child died in squalor, police said. Throughout the residence,
police found animal and human feces, dirty diapers, cigarette butts and
broken trash bags. Cats were going in and out of the kitchen closets.
The children slept on box springs and mattresses with no bed linens, according to Kirsch.
There was little food in the house, he noted in the affidavit.
Dodson told police he left the home Wednesday morning to ask an uncle
for money to pay outstanding bills, the affidavit said.
Dodson told Kirsch he later telephoned Bohon, who said Madison was
vomiting and had diarrhea. "Dodson also related that Madison's feeding
tube had come out and she could not get it back in," Kirsch wrote.
Dodson arrived home about 5 p.m. Wednesday and discovered Bohon had left.
The feeding tube was still dislodged, but Dodson could not find the
"proper equipment" to replace it so he "utilized a substitute piece to
keep the area open," he told police.
"Dodson said he placed Madison on the living room floor for the night
at approximately (11 p.m. Wednesday) and when he woke at approximately
5:15 a.m. (Thursday) he found Madison was unresponsive," Kirsch said in the affidavit.
The coroner's office will issue an official cause of death after it
gets formal reports from forensic pathologist Cyril Wecht, who performed
an autopsy and toxicology tests.
A preliminary report indicates Madison suffered from dehydration and malnutrition, police said.
Deputy Coroner Phillip Rishel pronounced her dead at the scene at
about 7 a.m. Thursday. She was still lying on the living room floor, Kirsch noted.
Her mother came home four hours later, the affidavit said.
District Attorney Jack Heneks said "a lack of presence of the natural
parents during most of the last day" contributed to Madison's death.
Bohon has no criminal record in Fayette. Dodson was arrested in 1999
for driving under the influence of alcohol. In another incident, he had
been cited for not using car seats for his children, records show.
Bohon and Dodson, who also are charged with endangering the welfare
of their children, were denied bail by District Judge Ronald Haggerty Jr.
They are being held in the county prison and face a preliminary
hearing Thursday before McClellandtown District Judge Randy Abraham.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_717254.html

Posters note: I can't believe that these 8 children endured the life they had and nobody, no teachers, doctors or neighbours, relatives or friends ever had any concerns about their welfare. Doctors and nurses who were involved with managing Madison's condition should have been concerned that with 7 other children these parents would need help. Child welfare agencies should have been involved with this family given Madison's special needs and the number of children they had. If that had have happened, the plight of the children would have been discovered.

Point Marion woman accused in toddler death jumped by inmates
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, January 11, 2011

* poster's comment: I would love 10 minutes alone with this evil woman- I guess at least I can live vicariously through these like-minded inmates!
Female inmates at the Fayette County jail are on lockdown after a mother accused of homicide in the death of her 15-month-old baby was assaulted in a common area, Warden Brian Miller said.

Miller said three female inmates jumped Tammy Jo Bohon, 35, of Point Marion at 8 a.m. Friday while the four were in a day area. Miller said an electrical breaker malfunctioned just before the attack, causing the lights in that area to go out.

A prison nurse who examined Bohon afterward found the woman had no apparent injuries, Miller said. Inmates have been confined to their cells.

"She got into a fight with three other inmates after they jumped her," Miller said.

Bohon had been in the jail for less than 12 hours prior to the attack. She was arraigned at 8:55 p.m. Thursday on charges of criminal homicide and endangering the welfare of children in the starvation death of her daughter, 15-month old Madison Violet Dodson. The father, Robert D. Dodson, 55, is in the county jail on the same charges.

Madison, a special needs child who was malnourished and dehydrated, was found dead Thursday morning, Fayette County authorities said. (....)

Miller yesterday said an investigation into the assault on Bohon is ongoing. He speculated the assault may have been triggered by the nature of the charges against Bohon.

"Until we find out who actually jumped her, and once we talk to them, I'm assuming it's because of (Bohon's) charges," Miller said. "(Inmates) don't take a liking to anyone charged with those kind of (crimes)."

Miller said the female inmates who staged the attack have not been identified. He said it is unlikely criminal charges will be recommended because Bohon was not seriously injured, but the inmates could face internal repercussions imposed by the prison.

Bohon and Dodson are being held without bond. Both are lodged in cells that keep them out of the general population, Miller said.

The pair face preliminary hearings tentatively scheduled for 1 p.m. Thursday before McClellandtown District Judge Randy Abraham.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_717550.html

I agree babyluv! Maybe they (inmates)will get at her again.Please join us on the main blog anytime!

10/20/2011 10:21 AM

Man free in toddler starvation gets DUI arrest
This article has been read 1179 times
POINT MARION — A western Pennsylvania judge has issued a bench warrant for a man who was charged with drunken driving in West Virginia while awaiting a preliminary hearing on homicide charges in the death of his 15-month-old daughter who used a feeding tube.
The Herald-Standard of Uniontown reports Thursday that a Fayette County judge issued the warrant for 56-year-old Robert David Dodson. Dodson and 35-year-old Tammy Jo Bohon have been free on bond awaiting a preliminary hearing on charges their daughter, Madison, starved in January at their squalid home. The couple's other seven children have been placed in protective custody.

The warrant was issued after the judge learned that Dodson was arrested for drunken driving and other charges on Friday by police in Morgantown, W. Va.

The hearing in the starvation case is set for Nov. 18.

http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/story11/AP-DUI-arrest-102011

Couple to face trial in toddler's death
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
A Point Marion couple accused of neglecting their 15-month-old daughter who died earlier this year will go to trial, a judge ruled Friday.

At a preliminary hearing Friday, District Judge Jesse Cramer ruled that Tammy Jo Bohon, 36, and Robert David Dodson, 56, must face trial on charges of criminal homicide and endangering the welfare of a child, according to court records. Ms. Bohon will also face a charge of possessing drug paraphernalia.

State police in Uniontown began investigating the couple after their daughter, Madison Violet Dodson, was found dead in the couple's home the morning of Jan. 6.

Police said Madison's feeding tube came out the day before her death. Rather than taking the girl to the hospital, Ms. Bohon went to a friend's house to smoke crack, leaving the infant's 16-year-old sister to care for her, police said.

Police said the girl's father, Mr. Dodson, returned home about an hour and a half later. They said Mr. Dodson attempted to re-insert Violet's feeding tube "but could not find the proper equipment" and then used "a substitute piece of equipment" to keep the hole open.

He put her to bed at about 11 p.m. that night and told police the girl was not responding when he woke up at around 5:15 a.m. the next morning.

The preliminary results of an autopsy performed by Dr. Cyril H. Wecht revealed that the girl was suffering from dehydration and malnutrition.

Both Mr. Dodson and Ms. Bohon are in the Fayette County Prison.



Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11323/1191061-55.stm#ixzz1eMIE8jWO