Foster mom accused of killing 10-year-old; neighbor says child asked her to adopt him right before

Editor’s note: Jennifer Wilson was taken into custody in Michigan.

Original story:

PORTER COUNTY, Ind. — A foster mother has been charged in the death of 10-year-old Dakota Levi Stevens after allegedly laying on him for several minutes. A warrant has been issued for her arrest.

The Porter County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched to the 200 block of Falcon Way in Liberty Township on the afternoon of April 25.

Stevens, 10, was in the foster care of Jennifer Wilson, who was “visibly distraught” when officers made contact with her. Documents state Wilson located Stevens at her next door neighbor’s home.

She told officers that Stevens threw himself on the ground back at her residence and stated she “laid on his midsection and called his caseworker,” documents state.

Wilson went on to say she laid on him for approximately five minutes and he eventually stopped moving, documents state. She reportedly believed he was faking.

Ring video from the home captured the incident and prosecutors describe the videos in court documents.

It begins with Wilson already laying on Stevens near his “neck/head area” in a twenty second video. In another video with a duration of 6:48, she is seen laying near the area of his buttocks and he did not move during the entire video, prosecutors allege.

Authorities reviewed two more videos that did not have listed durations. In the last one, Wilson can be heard saying “I was laying on him and he was acting bad” after asking her child to call 911.

Stevens was airlifted to a hospital in South Bend with severe trauma. He was pronounced dead on the morning of April 27. Steven’s death was ruled a homicide by mechanical asphyxia.

Wilson is charged with reckless homicide and is not in custody.

A neighbor told police Stevens ran to her house asking her to adopt him 30 minutes prior to the incident. Documents allege he was hit in the face and said his foster parents didn’t let him call his case worker.

WGN News previously spoke with his birth aunt, Ana Parrish-Parker after his death.

She had Stevens and his sister for nearly a year because his mother has struggled with addiction and his father had passed away.

“His eyes popped open in the morning and he was ‘go, go, go,’” Parrish-Parker said. “His passions were digging for bugs and playing outside with his sister.”

She said he was placed into foster care by DCS due to the department wanting him and his sister to go to additional therapy sessions.

Parrish-Parker said she didn’t think it was a good idea due to two additional days a week for visitation to their parents, plus school.

“They didn’t have time to be children. The judge ruled a removal from care (on behalf of DCS) and I never had the chance to speak to the judge to tell them I didn’t want (the kids) to have more therapy,” she said.

Steven’s foster dad from 2019-2021, Hayden Hetzel, previously said he was lucky to have shared great years with the boy.

“He never didn’t call me dad,” he said. “He was always like, ‘Dad this, Dad that. Let’s go on a walk.’”

Porter County Prosecutor Gary Germann told WGN News his office believes she will surrender within the next several days and do not deem her a flight risk.

“I am so appreciative to the Porter County police, the prosecutor and anyone who put effort into this case that the person responsible is being held accountable,” Parrish said Friday afternoon.

Last month in a statement, DCS said the foster home was placed on a “placement hold while the license is pending revocation.”

Wilson told police Stevens was placed with them on April 5 and that she and her husband were “ready to relinquish their license due to kids getting older and wanting to travel.”

They initially said no, but agreed to take him in because they provided respite care to him two years ago, court documents state.

Wilson will be facing a $20,000 bond, according to court records.

According to a spokesperson from DCS, the license of Jennifer Wilson’s foster home was revoked as of June 30, 2024.

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