Category: Parents from Hell

Man Sentenced to 35 Years for Death of 8-yr-old

Child killers Kimberly Grosklos and Derrick Dale

A Cumberland man was sentenced yesterday in connection with the death of his girlfriend’s daughter.

On the afternoon of April 6, 2020, Cumberland Police were called to a residence in the 11000 block of Kirkwood Drive after first responders reported a child in cardiac arrest. Brooklyn Mendheim, 8, was rushed to the hospital, where she later died. One of the nurses who treated her told police she had “extensive, fresh injuries” of the type usually seen in victims of physical and sexual abuse.

The child’s mother, Kimberly Grosklos, and Derrick Duane Dale, Grosklos’s boyfriend, initially tried to convince police the child had intentionally drowned herself in the bathtub. However, one of the other three kids – ages 11, 9 and 4- who were removed from the home broke down in tears and told authorities Brooklyn had been beaten with jumper cables shortly before her death.

An autopsy determined there was no water in the girl’s lungs. Her cause of death was ruled to be caused by nonaccidental trauma and suffocation.

Kimberly Grosklos, 34, received a 20-year sentence earlier this month after pleading guilty to neglect of a dependent resulting in death.

Last month, a jury found 31-year-old Dale, guilty of aggravated battery resulting in death, neglect of a dependent resulting in a death, and battery resulting in serious bodily injury to a person less than 14 years old. He was sentenced on Friday to 35 years.

Just the Facts: Hilma Marie Witte

Hilma Marie Witte, post-conviction for the murder of Elaine.

Name: Hilma Marie Witte

Aliases: Hilma Marie Crist, Marie Witte

Born: April 20, 1948 – Pittsburgh


Claim to Infamy: Not only did Hilma Marie coerce her two impressionable teenage sons to murder for her, but the victims were their close family members. Then, as if that weren’t macabre enough, she convinced the boys- as well as her own mother – and a young associate to assist in the grisly disposal of the second victim’s body.


The horror began in Beverly Shores on September 1, 1981. Hilma wanted to be a widow who would inherit her husband’s estate rather than a working single mother, and she got her wish. At her behest, elder son Eric shot his abusive father, Paul, as he slept.

After what everyone – including police – believed to have been an unfortunate firearm accident, Paul’s stepmother Elaine generously welcomed the remaining family members into her nearby Trail Creek home. Unfortunately for Elaine, Hilma Marie wasn’t content for long and soon set her sights on the elderly woman’s life savings. When Eric refused to kill for her again, Hilma convinced her younger son, Butch, to do the dirty work. 16-year-old Butch killed his grandmother with a crossbow in January of 1984. Hilma decided it would be unwise to attempt to persuade police that the family had suffered a second deadly accident and that they should dismember the body instead. Using various instruments – including a hammer, chisel, deep fat fryer, saw, and microwave – the family then dismembered Elaine and disposed of her body in various ghastly ways.


Current Status: Both Eric and Butch pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and were released early in 1996 due to good behavior. Butch has since passed away, but Eric has expressed great remorse for his crimes.

Hilma’s mother, Margaret “Marcie” O’Donnell was sentenced to 6 years. She, too, died after serving time for her crimes.

Hilma Marie Witte was convicted of two counts of murder, conspiracy to murder, and attempt to murder. She is currently serving time in the Indiana Women’s Prison. According to the Department of Correction, her earliest possible release date is April 2027.

Update: The Murder of Damari Perry

Damari Perry, let down by the system and murdered by his own family

The mother of Damari Perry, a six-year-old whose body was recently discovered in Gary, appeared in court last Wednesday. Jannie M. Perry, of North Chicago, was charged with first-degree murder, concealment of a homicidal death and obstructing justice. Her bond was set at $5 million.

Two of the child’s siblings have also been charged in connection with the crime. 20-year-old Jeremiah Perry has been charged with aggravated battery, concealing a homicide and obstruction of justice. An unidentified juvenile sibling also faces unspecified charges.

According to Lake County prosecutors, on December 29, 2021, Damari’s mother told relatives that he needed punished. The little boy was consequently forced into a cold shower for an extended period of time, after which he vomited and became unresponsive. His body was then wrapped in a trash bag, and thermal burns indicate someone attempted to burn him. Finally, Damari’s charred corpse was taken to Gary and left near an empty house before the family falsely reported him missing. An autopsy later determined his cause of death was hypothermia.

Perhaps most tragically, the responsibility for Damari’s death reaches far beyond those who stand accused. It has been revealed that Jannie Perry lost custody of her four other children due to allegations of domestic violence in 2014. Because the case remained open when Damari was born on December 30, 2015, he was placed into foster care at the time.

Perry regained custody of her children in 2017.

Breaking News: The Tragic Death of Damari Perry

Damari Perry, whose family has been charged in connection with his homicide, and the location where his body was found.
The photo on the far right appears to show Damari with tear emojis added to his face and posed against a crack in the wall.
(Date unknown)


A six-year-old child has been found dead, and his mothers and siblings have been charged in connection with the crime.

Damari Perry, of North Chicago, was initially reported missing just before 9 pm on Wednesday, Jan. 5, more than 24 hours after he had supposedly last been seen. According to the story his mother, Jannie Perry (38), told her local FOX affiliate, “He was out with his sister at a play date. She had a cocktail. I guess someone put something in her drink. She ended up falling asleep. When she woke up, my son was gone. When she questioned the girl about where my son was the girl said she didn’t know. When she came home, I reported him missing.”

Authorities called in the FBI, hoping to find Damari alive. Instead, in the early morning hours of January 8, they found his lifeless body across the state line, near an unoccupied house on Van Buren Street in Gary, Indiana. Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart then released a statement saying the story the family told is “completely false.” The prosecutor additionally stated, “He (Damari) was placed into a cold shower for an extended period of time, held there by family members at the direction of the mother. At some point, he became unresponsive, vomited and died. Additional accusations have been made by relatives and neighbors that the child was punched and denied food.

Damari’s mother, Jannie, has been charged with first-degree murder, concealment of a homicide and obstruction of justice. She is due in court Monday.

Jeremiah Perry, his 20-year-old brother, is being held on $3 million bond. He has been charged with aggravated battery, concealing a homicide and obstruction of justice in his brother’s death. He was already on probation for a weapons violation at the time of his arrest.

A third family member, only identified as an underage sibling, is also facing charges in juvenile court.

The family’s other minor children are now in the custody of the Department of Children and Family Services. DCFS has confirmed that they’ve had “prior contact” with the Perrys.

Fort Wayne Police Say Couple Attempted to Sell Their Daughter

Allegedly terrible parents Se Dar Be and Sadid Mot

The holiday season is again upon us and, if there’s anything more inevitable than the dazed, horror-stricken look of retail workers, it’s being reminded that although the weather outside can be frightful, people are much, much worse.

It’s that kind of story. You have been warned.

On December 20, 2020, Fort Wayne PD received a call from an anonymous source stating that her friend—a minor— was being forced to marry an adult against her will that very night. Officers went the scene, where they interrupted what generations past would’ve politely referred to as a “child wedding” in progress. Zee Kdee Ya, the 27-year-old prospective groom and possible ephebophile, was taking the hand of a girl only 13 years old.

Wearing a veil, dress, and make-up, the would-be child bride told police her parents had signed a wedding contract against her wishes the week prior to the ceremony. Despite saying she “didn’t want that,” the girl had been forced to move in with Ya and share his bed since then. When she resisted his attempts at sex, he reportedly quoted biblical passages to suit his purpose and said “I own you now, I can make you do what I want.” The victim sought help from her parents but, according to court documents, they said she “needed to have sex with Ya because he was now her husband.”

When questioned, the girl’s mother claimed the victim was only getting engaged and wouldn’t actually get married until she was 18. However, Se Dar Be then went on to admit the family had received gifts from the groom in return, including cash, and that she had “used the $2,000″ he’d paid to provide food for the party to celebrate the highly illegal wedding (plus buy that makeup for the victim). The father, Sadid Mot, told police the girl had been living with Ya but denied knowing anything about the money.

Ya confirmed both the mother’s claims concerning the gifts and money, as well as the father’s claim that the girl had been moved in with him, but denied forcing her to share a bed. He then went on to say that because the girl had cancelled the wedding, he wanted his money and jewelry back.

The Department of Child Services had reportedly told both father Sadid Mot and too-eager groom Ya that the nuptuals were against the law due to the girl’s age “on multiple occasions prior to Dec. 20.” Mot and mother Be were charged with one count each of Child Selling and Neglect of a Dependent. Ya was also charged with Neglect of a Dependent, as well as Child Solicitation.