On Oct. 26, 1965, Indianapolis police were called to a rundown house on East New York Street where they found the body of 16-year-old Sylvia Likens on a bare mattress in an upstairs bedroom. The only adult resident of the house, Gertrude Baniszewski, told investigators she had been caring for Sylvia while her parents were out of town -- and that the teenager had been attacked by a gang of boys.
But a coroner's examination would show that Sylvia had been systematically beaten and malnourished for weeks. Her body was covered with sores, burns and bruises. She had been branded, and the words "I am a prostitute" were etched on her stomach.
Although Sylvia's injuries were horrific, the most shocking fact about the case was that the torture had gone on so long and had involved so many neighborhood children, who had joined in on the "punishing" of Sylvia. Neighbors had heard strange noises and visitors to the Baniszewski home had seen at least some of Sylvia's injuries.
How it began:
Sylvia's ordeal began in July 1965 when her parents, Lester and Betty Likens, offered Baniszewski $20 a week to care for their two daughters while they traveled with a carnival operating a concession stand. Baniszewski agreed to board 16-year old Sylvia and 15-year old Jenny.
Lester Likens said his girls needed some discipline and encouraged Baniszewski to "straighten them out."
Gertrude Baniszewski was a haggard, underweight asthmatic who had endured several failed marriages, 13 pregnancies and six miscarriages in her 37 years. She had seven children living in the house. The eldest, Paula, 17, was unmarried and pregnant. The youngest was an infant.
The Baniszewski home at 3850 E. New York St., later described by attorneys as a "cesspool," was also the hangout of other neighborhood children, who called her "Gerty."
No one has been able to explain how Sylvia became the object of torture that summer. The punishment started with "whippings" with a fraternity-style wooden paddle for both Likens girls, as they lay naked across a mattress.
The girls were beaten for exchanging soft drink bottles for change at a nearby grocery. Gertrude's resentment toward the girls began to focus on Sylvia alone. She was the outspoken one. Jenny was small and frail because of a childhood bout with polio. Sylvia was beaten for eating too much at a church dinner and kicked in the genitals after admitting she had a boyfriend in California.
Neighborhood children began to crowd the home to participate in the torture. The children took turns practicing their judo on Sylvia, hurling her against a wall. Some began kicking and beating her. Others extinguished their cigarettes on her skin. As Gertrude and a gang of teen-agers watched, Sylvia was forced to undress in the living room and insert an empty Coke bottle into her vagina.
After the beatings, Sylvia was forced into a scalding hot bath so she would be "cleansed of her sins." She was severely beaten and burned for wetting her mattress while asleep and Gertrude decided that Sylvia was no longer fit to live with her children.
Near the end, Sylvia was no longer permitted to leave the house. She was thrown down the cellar stairs and locked in, given crackers for food and refused the right to use a bathroom. Gertrude Baniszewski announced to her children that Sylvia was a "prostitute, and she’s proud of it; so we’ll just put it on her stomach." She took a large needle and began to carve the words "I’m a prostitute and proud of it!" into Sylvia’s stomach. Richard Hobbs, a neighbor boy, finished the etching.
When Baniszewski realized Sylvia might be dying, she forced her to write a note saying a gang of boys beat her. The plan was to blindfold her and dump her in nearby woods with the note. Sylvia tried to escape but Gertrude and one of the boys stopped her, beating her again and throwing her back into the basement.
Sylvia Likens died Oct. 26, 1965. Cause of death was determined to be brain swelling, internal hemorrhaging of the brain and shock induced by Sylvia’s extensive skin damage. Sylvia also suffered from extreme malnutrition. She was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Lebanon.
The Baniszewski trial - May 1966
At her trial the following year, Baniszewski denied any knowledge of the torture, claiming the children must have done it all. She entered pleas of not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity.
On May 19, 1966, a jury found Baniszewski guilty of first-degree murder while Paula Baniszewski was found guilty of second-degree murder. Hobbs, along with Baniszewski's son John and another neighborhood boy, Coy Hubbard, were convicted of manslaughter. Gertrude and Paula Baniszewski were sentenced to life terms at the Indiana Women's Prison in Indianapolis. The boys were sentenced to two-to-21-year terms at the Indiana State Reformatory in Pendleton.
In 1971, the Indiana Supreme Court granted Gertrude and Paula Baniszewski a new trial due to "prejudicial atmosphere," but Gertrude was again convicted of first-degree murder on Aug. 5, 1971. Paula pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter and served about two years in prison after that. The three boys were released on parole for good behavior in 1968, after serving about two years each of their sentences.
In September 1985, Gertrude Baniszewski was released on parole. She changed her name to Nadine Van Fossan and moved to Iowa where she lived in obscurity until her death from lung cancer on June 16, 1990. Paula married and moved to a farm in Iowa. John became a lay minister in Texas and counseled children of divorced parents. Hobbs died of cancer at the age of 21, four years after being released from the reformatory. Hubbard has had several brushes with the law. Lester and Betty Likens divorced. Jenny Likens was last reported living in Maine.
On Oct. 26, 1965, Indianapolis police were called to a rundown house on East New York Street where they found the body of 16-year-old Sylvia Likens on a bare mattress in an upstairs bedroom. The only adult resident of the house, Gertrude Baniszewski, told investigators she had been caring for Sylvia while her parents were out of town -- and that the teenager had been attacked by a gang of boys.
But a coroner's examination would show that Sylvia had been systematically beaten and malnourished for weeks. Her body was covered with sores, burns and bruises. She had been branded, and the words "I am a prostitute" were etched on her stomach.
Although Sylvia's injuries were horrific, the most shocking fact about the case was that the torture had gone on so long and had involved so many neighborhood children, who had joined in on the "punishing" of Sylvia. Neighbors had heard strange noises and visitors to the Baniszewski home had seen at least some of Sylvia's injuries.
How it began:
Sylvia's ordeal began in July 1965 when her parents, Lester and Betty Likens, offered Baniszewski $20 a week to care for their two daughters while they traveled with a carnival operating a concession stand. Baniszewski agreed to board 16-year old Sylvia and 15-year old Jenny.
Lester Likens said his girls needed some discipline and encouraged Baniszewski to "straighten them out."
Gertrude Baniszewski was a haggard, underweight asthmatic who had endured several failed marriages, 13 pregnancies and six miscarriages in her 37 years. She had seven children living in the house. The eldest, Paula, 17, was unmarried and pregnant. The youngest was an infant.
The Baniszewski home at 3850 E. New York St., later described by attorneys as a "cesspool," was also the hangout of other neighborhood children, who called her "Gerty."
No one has been able to explain how Sylvia became the object of torture that summer. The punishment started with "whippings" with a fraternity-style wooden paddle for both Likens girls, as they lay naked across a mattress.
The girls were beaten for exchanging soft drink bottles for change at a nearby grocery. Gertrude's resentment toward the girls began to focus on Sylvia alone. She was the outspoken one. Jenny was small and frail because of a childhood bout with polio. Sylvia was beaten for eating too much at a church dinner and kicked in the genitals after admitting she had a boyfriend in California.
Neighborhood children began to crowd the home to participate in the torture. The children took turns practicing their judo on Sylvia, hurling her against a wall. Some began kicking and beating her. Others extinguished their cigarettes on her skin. As Gertrude and a gang of teen-agers watched, Sylvia was forced to undress in the living room and insert an empty Coke bottle into her vagina.
After the beatings, Sylvia was forced into a scalding hot bath so she would be "cleansed of her sins." She was severely beaten and burned for wetting her mattress while asleep and Gertrude decided that Sylvia was no longer fit to live with her children.
Near the end, Sylvia was no longer permitted to leave the house. She was thrown down the cellar stairs and locked in, given crackers for food and refused the right to use a bathroom. Gertrude Baniszewski announced to her children that Sylvia was a "prostitute, and she’s proud of it; so we’ll just put it on her stomach." She took a large needle and began to carve the words "I’m a prostitute and proud of it!" into Sylvia’s stomach. Richard Hobbs, a neighbor boy, finished the etching.
When Baniszewski realized Sylvia might be dying, she forced her to write a note saying a gang of boys beat her. The plan was to blindfold her and dump her in nearby woods with the note. Sylvia tried to escape but Gertrude and one of the boys stopped her, beating her again and throwing her back into the basement.
Sylvia Likens died Oct. 26, 1965. Cause of death was determined to be brain swelling, internal hemorrhaging of the brain and shock induced by Sylvia’s extensive skin damage. Sylvia also suffered from extreme malnutrition. She was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Lebanon.
The Baniszewski trial - May 1966
At her trial the following year, Baniszewski denied any knowledge of the torture, claiming the children must have done it all. She entered pleas of not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity.
On May 19, 1966, a jury found Baniszewski guilty of first-degree murder while Paula Baniszewski was found guilty of second-degree murder. Hobbs, along with Baniszewski's son John and another neighborhood boy, Coy Hubbard, were convicted of manslaughter. Gertrude and Paula Baniszewski were sentenced to life terms at the Indiana Women's Prison in Indianapolis. The boys were sentenced to two-to-21-year terms at the Indiana State Reformatory in Pendleton.
In 1971, the Indiana Supreme Court granted Gertrude and Paula Baniszewski a new trial due to "prejudicial atmosphere," but Gertrude was again convicted of first-degree murder on Aug. 5, 1971. Paula pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter and served about two years in prison after that. The three boys were released on parole for good behavior in 1968, after serving about two years each of their sentences.
In September 1985, Gertrude Baniszewski was released on parole. She changed her name to Nadine Van Fossan and moved to Iowa where she lived in obscurity until her death from lung cancer on June 16, 1990. Paula married and moved to a farm in Iowa. John became a lay minister in Texas and counseled children of divorced parents. Hobbs died of cancer at the age of 21, four years after being released from the reformatory. Hubbard has had several brushes with the law. Lester and Betty Likens divorced. Jenny Likens was last reported living in Maine.
