Indiana woman accused of killing 10-year-old foster son by sitting on him arrested in Michigan

NEW BUFFALO TWP., MICH (WWJ) An Indiana foster mother has been charged in a warrant with reckless homicide for allegedly sitting on her young foster son, causing his death.

In a press release, the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office said she was arrested in New Buffalo Township, in southwest Michigan near the Indiana border, last Saturday (7/13).

The Sheriff’s Office called her a “homicide suspect.” Multiple reports identified her as Jennifer Lee Wilson, 48, of Porter County, Indiana.

Her foster son—Dakota, 10—died in late April.

According to CBS News Chicago, Wilson lay on "his mid-section" for about five minutes as punishment after he ran away to a neighborhood’s house. The Indy Star reported a seconds-long Ring Doorbell video shows him screaming at first. When she rolled him over, she saw his eyelids were pale. By the time police arrived, he was not breathing and had no pulse.

Wilson weighed about 340 pounds and Dakota weighed about 90, according to the Indy Star.

Dakota was hospitalized on life support for "several days" before he died from his injuries, ABC-7 reported.

According to the Indy Star's reporting; Wilson had three other children in the house at the time, and she was the fifth foster home for Dakota in the past five years.

The St. Joseph County Coroner’s Office identified Dakota’s cause of death as mechanical asphyxia and a homicide.

Reckless Homicide in Indiana is considered a Level 5 felony and is punishable by up to six years in prison.