A thirteen-year-old boy is found dead in his bedroom. His parents say he fell down the stairs. The autopsy reveals over forty bruises, some in various stages of healing. The cause of death is blunt force trauma to the head. The parents are arrested. They show no emotion at trial.

In this episode, I examine a case where parents beat their son to death over the course of months. The boy had been removed from school for homeschooling, allegedly due to bullying. In reality, his parents were isolating him so no one would see the bruises. Neighbors reported hearing screams but never called police. The family seemed normal. The parents seemed loving. The boy seemed happy in the few photos his parents allowed on social media.

The investigation began when a relative noticed the boy had not been seen in weeks. Police forced entry into the home. The parents claimed the boy was at a friend's house. The friend had not seen him in months. The parents were arrested after a brief standoff. The father confessed during interrogation, then recanted. The mother said nothing. Both were convicted of first-degree murder. They will spend the rest of their lives in prison. The relative who called police testified at sentencing. She said she wished she had called sooner.

Turn down the lights, put on your headphones, and press play because the parents who beat their son to death were not monsters. They were worse. They were ordinary people who did monstrous things.

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