Unraveling a Nightmare: Shaun & Delylah Tara

In March 2014, 39-year-old Tami Joy Huntsman, a woman living in a modest Salinas, California apartment, took in three young relatives: eight-year-old Frankie Tara, five-year-old Shaun Tara, and two-year-old Delylah Tara.

Their mother, Vivian Saucedo, had been married to Huntsman’s cousin. Frankie and Shaun had been in foster care when their mother was pregnant with Delylah. Then in 2013, their mother took her life by stepping in front of a car at just 33 years old. Their father, Shaun Sr., briefly cared for all three but was arrested in early 2014 on drug and weapons charges. Knowing he’d likely face prison time, he left the children with Huntsman without informing their grandparents, hoping to keep them out of the foster system.¹

At the time, Huntsman lived with her husband, Chris Criswell, and her own children, including a teenage son and ten-year-old twins, making for an already busy household. Soon after the children arrived, Gonzalo Curiel, a 16-year-old friend of Huntsman’s son who’d been kicked out of his father’s home, began spending time there.

Initially, his visits seemed harmless, but they grew frequent and then extended into overnight stays. Curiel was being groomed by Huntsman, leading to her husband Chris moving out and filing for divorce. The household dynamic shifted further when Huntsman’s teenage son was sent to juvenile hall following a robbery conviction, and Curiel moved into Huntsman’s bedroom.²

It took more than a year for the children’s family to track down Huntsman. They’d never met her and had difficulty reaching her by phone. Shortly after Thanksgiving in 2015, Huntsman and Curiel made a disturbing decision, packing up and driving north with Huntsman’s children and Frankie. Noticeably absent were Delylah and Shaun. During the drive, Frankie asked Huntsman about her siblings, and Huntsman replied that she’d “put them up for adoption,” a sudden and suspicious explanation.³

The unsettling mood in the car was intensified by a foul odour wafting from a large plastic storage bin in the back of the vehicle. The children couldn’t fully understand its meaning, but the odour lingered as an ominous reminder. When they arrived in Redding, northern California, Huntsman and Curiel unloaded the bin and other items into a storage unit, where the smell began to dissipate in the vehicle.⁴

Locked away, the horror of what was hidden inside the bin waited in that cold, anonymous storage space, yet to be discovered.

Once arrived in Quincy, the family moved in with a friend of Huntsman’s brother. She reconnected with a friend, April Lorenzo, and while here, they told her that Frankie was mentally disabled and forced her to stay out of sight. April noticed that Frankie wasn’t allowed to eat and when they went for a walk, she was forced to walk barefoot on a steep, rocky, trail. After the family left, April called child protective services to share her belief that Frankie was being abused.⁵

When CPS and a sheriff’s deputy arrived at Huntsman’s apartment on Main Street, they quickly spotted her vehicle parked outside. As they approached, they made a shocking discovery inside the locked car: Frankie, wrapped in a blanket, shivering in the cold air. But the scene only grew more disturbing.⁶

The little girl’s body was covered in bruises and scars. She was severely malnourished, her fragile bones visible under her skin. Her injuries were untreated and severe, including a broken collarbone and finger, a dislocated jaw, and some missing and loose teeth. When detectives questioned Huntsman about Frankie’s condition, she blamed the injuries on Frankie herself, while Curiel claimed ignorance.⁷

Frankie was rushed to the hospital, where doctors noted her severely low weight of just forty pounds. She was found to have open sores, lice, and endured a five-hour surgery to repair her fractured shoulder. Meanwhile, detectives took Huntsman and Curiel in for questioning. After being read his Miranda rights, Curiel initially admitted to having a role in Frankie’s injuries. But as he began to understand the seriousness of the situation, he grew cautious, ultimately asking for a lawyer and ending the interview.⁸

With no further delay, authorities arrested both Huntsman and Curiel—Huntsman going to jail, and Curiel, just 17, sent to a juvenile detention facility in Butte County. The horror of Frankie’s condition was only the beginning. That afternoon, Huntsman’s mother called police and asked where Shaun and Delylah were, but detectives were taken aback; they had no knowledge of any other children.⁹

When they spoke with Huntsman, she told them that “some agency” had taken custody of the children, but Curiel was more forthcoming. He said that the two children were dead in a storage unit in Redding. Detectives arrived at the facility off Tarmac Road and opened up the storage unit rented by Huntsman. As the detectives stepped inside, an overwhelming stench hit them up the face. They had hoped Shaun and Delylah were still alive, but the smell told them otherwise.

Towards the back of the unit was a duffel bag and a blue storage bin. It was evident that this was where the stench was coming from. The bin was sealed shut with duct tape around the lid. The detectives opened up the container and found the decomposed bodies of Shaun and Delylah.¹⁰

During the autopsies, it was determined that Shaun stood at 45 inches tall and weighed just 29.5 pounds, while Delylah measured 37 inches and weighed a mere 18.75 pounds—so low that it was off the charts.

Dr. Mark Super, the forensic pathologist, concluded that both children had died from blunt force head injuries compounded by severe malnutrition. Their bodies were covered in bruises, exhibiting both old and new injuries. Dr. Super observed that their internal organs were significantly smaller than expected for their ages, a clear indication of malnutrition. “The body starts to take protein away from the organs,” he explained, highlighting the severity of their condition.¹¹

Delylah’s autopsy revealed a blood clot on her brain, indicating trauma, as well as swelling in the brain and a nearly healed fracture in her right humerus. Additionally, her lungs were inflamed, and she was beginning to develop pneumonia. While the primary cause of her death was attributed to head trauma, her malnutrition played a critical role in her overall decline.

In Shaun’s case, the pathologist found a blood clot between his scalp and skull, along with a healing broken rib. His body bore numerous bruises on his arms, legs, penis, torso, and head, painting a grim picture of the abuse and neglect he had endured.

Huntsman and Curiel were charged with two counts of murder, three counts of torture, one count of child abuse and two counts of conspiracy, one to commit torture and one to commit child abuse. During the investigation, it was revealed that child welfare authorities had visited Huntsman four times in the past year to investigate neglect allegations.¹²

The complaints centred around issues like poor supervision, improper feeding, lice infestations, and filthy living conditions. Among the callers was Huntsman’s own mother, Joy, who called child protective services multiple times. During one visit, Joy found all the children infested with lice while Huntsman did nothing to remedy the situation.

Despite Joy’s desperate calls for help, the young children continued to endure a life of neglect and poverty, crammed into a cockroach-infested one-bedroom apartment with scant food and little supervision. Initially, there were no reports of physical abuse, but that changed when Shaun confided in a social worker that Curiel had spanked him and his sister with a belt. Huntsman dismissed these warnings, claiming Curiel was simply a neighbourhood kid she was helping care for.

The troubling circumstances surrounding Huntsman’s household drew scrutiny on several occasions. One report indicated that the children were left home alone, raising safety concerns. On another occasion, Frankie’s school alerted authorities, citing signs of malnutrition. School officials noted that Frankie always wore the same unkempt clothing, was infested with lice, and displayed clear signs of neglect. During lunchtime, she would pile food onto her plate and eat quickly, indicating severe hunger and food insecurity. In stark contrast, Huntsman’s biological children appeared to be in much better condition.

When social workers visited Huntsman’s home, they discovered that no legal guardianship had been established for the children. Although Huntsman expressed her desire to care for them, the absence of legal documentation complicated matters further. As the Department of Social Services continued its investigation, they learned that the children’s grandparents were actively searching for them, unaware that they were living with Huntsman. During conversations with social workers, Frankie offered a heartbreaking insight into her situation: “Nobody else wanted to take us, so she took and adopted us.”

In August, another troubling report surfaced. A caller alleged that Delylah had been tied to the bed as punishment for urinating in her pants. When a social worker visited, the home was found to be extremely cluttered and filthy, with cockroaches crawling along the bedroom walls. During this visit, the social worker noted bruises and scratches on Shaun’s head, while Frankie sported a shaved head from repeated lice treatments. All the children had bloody legs from scratching bug bites. Despite these signs of distress, the children told the social worker they felt safe, and the case was closed.

On a subsequent visit, the social worker found the children dressed in long sleeves and pants on a warm day but felt it inappropriate to ask them to lift their clothing. After two unsuccessful attempts to follow up with Huntsman, the case was closed.

Another report came in October, alleging that the children were left alone at night and had a lice infestation. This caller reiterated concerns about Delylah being tied to the bed and the inappropriate relationship between Huntsman and Curiel. Alarmingly, this incident did not prompt a visit from a social worker.

As the weeks passed, social workers struggled to reach Huntsman. They left three voice messages, knocked on her door three times, wrote a letter, and checked the benefits database to see if the family’s address had changed. Child Protective Services was not the only agency that had visited the household; the Salinas police had been called twice in six months regarding child abuse allegations. On the first visit, no one answered the door. The second time, they found one child asleep and the other two doing homework.

In February, Tami Joy Huntsman pleaded guilty to two counts of murder as well as torture and abuse. During the court hearing, more details about the case were revealed. It was believed that Delylah and Shaun were murdered after Frankie stole a bagel on thanksgiving. The children had been starved, and on Thanksgiving, Huntsman had received a free turkey for her family. And indeed, her biological children and Curiel sat down and ate the turkey, but the Tara children weren’t allowed any. That night, Frankie took the bagel which led to a fatal beating of all three children. Frankie was almost beaten to death, but Delylah and Shaun weren’t so lucky. Frankie had made a full recovery, although she had psychological scars that would last a lifetime.¹³

Gonzalo Curiel stood trial in April of 2018. Evidence was presented from his cell phone, showing photographs of Frankie naked in the shower. The Tara children were often locked in the small bathroom where they were beaten with golf clubs and shower heads. Huntsman’s biological children testified against him, detailing the abuse Shaun, Delylah and Frankie had endured. Frankie also testified, relaying how they were often locked in the bathroom naked and sprayed with cold water. She recalled how Curiel broke her jaw by punching her, and said that her arm was broken as Huntsman held her down and Curiel spanked her with a belt.

Curiel was convicted of all of the charges against him. Huntsman returned to court in May, and she was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Curiel was sentenced to three life terms but because of his young age, he could seek parole in 2040.

Watch our documentary on this case at YouTube:

1. The Daily Beast, 15 December, 2015 – “Who Killed these Preschoolers?”
2. The Sacramento Bee, 15 December, 2015 – “Tip Led to Discovery”
3. San Francisco Chronicle, 16 December, 2015 – “Grisly Discovery in Redding Locker”
4. The Daily Beast, 17 December, 2015 – “How Everyone Failed the Storage Bin Kids”
5. The Daily Cardinal, 17 December, 2015 – “Murder Charges Planned After Children Found in Locker”
6. Monterey County Weekly, 22 February, 2016 – “Accused Salinas Child Murderer”
7. The Monterey County Herald, 25 February, 2016 – “Child Welfare”
8. The Monterey County Herald, 24 March, 2016 – “Child Protective Services”
9. Alameda Times-Star, 1 April, 2016 – “A CPS Failure”
10. The Monterey County Herald, 18 April, 2018 – “Officer who Found Bodies”
11. The Monterey County Herald, 14 April, 2018 – “Former Huntsman Friend”
12. Monterey County Weekly, 28 February, 2018 – “Tami Huntsman Pleads Guilty”
13. International Business Times, 12 January, 2018 – “Stolen Bagel”