100 Murder Cases

Gertrude Baniszewski, the "torture mother."

In 1965 police found the emaciated body of 16-year-old Indianapolis resident, Sylvia Likens. She was covered in cigarette burns and sprawled out on a filthy mattress in the home of 37-year-old Gertrude Baniszewski, according to Indianapolis Monthly.

Sylvia and her sister Jenny boarded with Baniszewski because their parents were carnival-workers and traveled a lot. The girls' father paid Baniszewski $20 a week in exchange for housing his daughters. Although Lester Likens had agreed to pay Gertrude $20 a week in exchange for the care of his daughters, after approximately two weeks, these payments failed to consistently arrive upon prearranged dates occasionally one of two days late. In response, Gertrude began venting her frustration at the sisters beating their bare buttocks with various instruments, such as a one-quarter-inch-thick (6.4 mm) paddle, making the statement such as "Well I took care of you two little bitches for nothing!" Eventually, she focused her beatings on Sylvia, alone. But, this wasn't a crime of an adult beating on a child; Baniszewski was the mother of seven children, all of whom lived in the house and partook in the violent and sadistic attacks against Sylvia. Neighborhood kids, some as young as 10, were invited to join in or watch. No one reported anything.

In October 1965, Sylvia was beaten to death. Baniszewski apparently forced a neighbor to call the police and tell them Sylvia ran away. When police arrived at the home, Jenny Likens, Sylvia's younger sister, apparently whispered to one of the officers, "Get me out of here and I'll tell you everything." Baniszewski got 20 years in prison and was then released, she moved to Iowa, changed her name and died of lung cancer in 1990. The others, who were mainly children, all got away with short sentences if any.