It was around 10:15AM on Sunday morning, the 28th of February, 2021, when a couple went to Middletown police station in Ohio. They were 29-year-old Brittany Gosney and her boyfriend, 42-year-old James Hamilton. They informed police that Gosney’s 6-year-old son, James Hutchinson, was missing.
They said that they had awoken in the morning to find that James was missing from their home. They explained that they had searched for James for a couple of hours but to no avail, and then came down to the police station.1
James was a first-grade student at Rosa Parks Elementary School. The principal of the school, Tracey Neely, said that James was a happy and outgoing student. He was a real loveable little boy, and would greet his teachers each morning with a massive hug. Even when he returned to school with the COVID protocols in place, James always tried to sneak in a hug or at the very least, a high five.2
James was described as a white male standing at around 3 feet tall and weighing around 42lbs. He had red hair and blue eyes. According to Gosney, her son was wearing a red shirt with blue and red Batman pyjama pants.
Straight away, police were suspicious of Gosney and Hamilton. When they came in to report James missing, they both had conflicting versions of events when it came to the last time that they had seen James. It appeared as though they couldn’t quite get their stories straight, so police separated them and spoke to them individually.3
It wouldn’t take long until the truth finally came out, and it was more horrific than anybody ever could have imagined.
When investigators momentarily left the room, Hamilton could be heard asking himself: “Man, why did this boy have to do this? James, why do you do this stupid stuff?” In the other interrogation room, investigators were speaking with Gosney and her fake story had begun to unravel.4
After sticking to her story for several hours, Gosney finally told investigators that at around 3AM on Saturday morning, she drove James and his two siblings, who were 9-years-old and 7-years-old, to Rush Run Wildlife Area in Somerville. Gosney wasn’t taking her children there for an early morning day-trip. She explained that she took James and his siblings to the relatively isolated area to either scare them or abandon them.
She pulled over in the parking lot and ordered the three children out of the van. She said that James had reached out and held on to the van door handle, presumably trying to get back in the van. It was late at night, dark, and the idea of being out in the wilderness alone would be terrifying for most adults, never mind children. James grabbed a hold of the door handle and clung on for life while Gosney drove off at a high rate of speed, dragging him for some distance.5
Gosney explained that James eventually let go of the handle and she continued to drive. She said she returned to the scene around 30 to 40 minutes later, and said that she found James dead in the middle of the parking lot. He had sustained a head injury.6
She ordered the two other children to get back in the van and bundled James’ lifeless body back into the car. She told the investigators that she had placed James’ body in the van “nice and softly.”
When they got home, she took him upstairs and placed him in a bedroom while the other two children went to bed. When they were asleep, Gosney and Hamilton drove James’ body from the home to Lawrenceburg in Indiana, which was around an hour away. Here, they pulled over on the I-275 bridge and threw his body into the Ohio River after weighing it down with a concrete block.7
She opened up further, providing more poignant details of James’ last moments on earth. She told the investigators that when she pulled up in the parking lot, James didn’t want to get out. His two siblings got out but he refused. She stated: “I was like, ‘Get out.’ I told the kids I was sorry, the older kids were the only ones who got out.”
She said that James replied: “Mommy, I don’t want to be here.” He eventually got out of the van but he kept trying to open the back door to climb back in. She confessed that she knew she dragged James as he clung on to the handle. She explained that she couldn’t hear much because she had the music on loud but said that at one point, she heard the children screaming and heard a noise, but didn’t stop to investigate what this noise was or investigate whether James was okay. She simply continued to drive before eventually returning.8
Hamilton eventually came clean as well. He stressed that he had not been with Gosney when she killed James but admitted that they had both taken the children out to Rush Run beforehand and dropped the children off as a scare tactic and as a form of punishment.9
With the gruesome revelation, investigators would embark on the Ohio River to begin the search for James. They were assisted by trained searchers but the water levels were extremely high and the water was treacherous, which hampered the search.
Gosney and Hamilton were both arrested. Gosney was charged with murder, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence while Hamilton was charged with abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence. Gosney’s bond was set at $1 million and Hamilton’s was set at $100,000.
Police Chief David Birk said that Gosney had not shown any remorse for her actions. He said during the press conference: “This has really touched my soul and my heart. My kids are older, but my youngest is 16, but I’m just sitting here, you know, the poor six year old has no idea what’s going on and what’s happening, and for the other kids to go through this too. It’s just heartbreaking.”10
As news of James’ murder swept throughout the media, tributes for him would come in. The principal at his school, Tracy Neely, sent out a statement on the Monday morning. It read: “We are all mourning the loss of our friend James today. James was a happy and joyful soul who loved school. On the days he was in class, he would give hugs to all his teachers as he walked into school.”
On Monday night, a vigil was held at Garner Park in Middletown. Hundreds of people would show up to pay tribute to James, including his father, Lewis Hutchinson. At the vigil, Lewis said to the crowd: “I don’t even know how to process all this. He was just my world.” The community would light candles, hold a moment of silence and then release balloons into the air.11
A celebration of life was held in James’ honour at Barnitz Stadium, right beside Rosa Parks Elementary school. The stadium was filled to the brim. Alongside the podium was a large painting of James. It had been painted by high school students in Rick Krebs’ art class.
Prosecutors would reveal that in the days leading up to James’ murder, both Gosney and Hamilton had hog-tied the hands and legs of both James and his two siblings, and then placed cloths in their mouths and left them in this position in a closet for several hours.
The family had lived quite a transient lifestyle, bouncing from area to area and from hotel to hotel. Hamilton didn’t have a job and had a lengthy criminal record which spanned decades. In 1999 he was convicted of burglary and then in 2005, he was convicted on a weapons charge. These were both felony convictions.
Gosney also had a fourth child, but years earlier, that child had been removed from her care, placed into foster care and then subsequently adopted. It was quite similar to Gosney’s own background. She had lived with her father and his girlfriend but when she was 12-years-old, she was removed by Hamilton County Children’s Services.
As investigators were trying to establish a motive, Gosney would provide one. She claimed that for some time, Hamilton had been pressuring her to get rid of James and his two siblings. She said that Hamilton beat the children and had tied them up.
Gosney’s court-appointed defence lawyer, David Washington, would file a motion seeking an insanity plea for his client. However, towards the end of April, Gosney was found competent to stand trial and the insanity plea was withdrawn.
The psychologist report revealed that Gosney was a childhood sexual assault survivor. It read in part: “It was also noted that she did not appear to present with distress as she discussed the offenses charged, including the death of her youngest child instead, discussing this in a matter-of-fact manner and presenting with no emotional attachment to others.”
As Gosney’s trial date was fast approaching, she appeared in court in mid-August. During the court-hearing, she unexpectedly pleaded guilty to murder and to two counts of felony child endangerment. The guilty plea had been part of a plea agreement in which the remaining 13 counts against Gosney were dismissed.12
Hamilton would follow suit, appearing in court shortly thereafter to plead guilty to kidnapping, gross abuse of a corpse and two counts of child endangering.
Brittany Gosney would be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 21 years. It was the maximum sentence that could be handed down. Before the sentence was handed down by Judge Powers, Gosney was asked twice if she had anything she wanted to say. Both times she said no.
Outside of court, Prosecutor Gmoser touched on this and underlined what he said was a lack of remorse. He stated: “Did any of you hear the words, ‘I am sorry?’ Did any of you hear, ‘I apologize for this’ to the people of Butler County and to the nation who have followed this case?”
James Hamilton was sentenced to a minimum of 15 years in prison and a maximum of 19 years and was ordered to register as a child victim offender and a violent offender once released. Before the sentence was handed down, Hamilton read from a piece of paper. He apologized for his actions, said that he felt remorse, and expressed his hopes for James’ body to be recovered from the Ohio River.13
It was revealed that the hard drive Gosney and Hamilton had disposed of was recovered. It showed Gosney leaving the residence that night with her three children in tow. At 4:53AM, the van returns. Gosney gets out of the car carrying the lifeless body of James. He only has on one shoe. One of his siblings trails behind, carrying his other shoe.14
A bench memorializing James was placed at his former elementary school. The bench contained a photograph of James smiling on the back, alongside the words: “The greatest thing we can do is to help somebody know that they are loved and capable of loving.” Since James’ body had not been recovered, the bench symbolizes something close to a gravestone.15
Footnotes:
- ABC – 2 WSB, 1 March, 2021 – “Mom Charged, Accused of Dumping Boy’s Body in River”
- CBS – 12 KWCH, 1 March, 2021 – “Ohio Mom Tried to Abandon 6-Year-Old”
- CBS – 7 WHIO, 1 March, 2021 – “Mother is Not Showing Much Remorse”
- The Daily Beast, 1 March, 2021 – “Ohio 6-Year-Old Died After Clinging to Car”
- The Daily Beast, 1 March, 2021 – “Ohio 6-Year-Old Died After Clinging to Car”
- Associated Press, 5 March, 2021 – “Mom of Boy Allegedly Dragged, Dumped is Charged with Murder”
- CBS – 7 WHIO, 5 March, 2021 – “Mother, Boyfriend Accused of Killing 6-Year-Old Indicted on 31 Felonies”
- Associated Press, 7 March, 2021 – “Search of River Resumes”
- CBS – 7 WHIO, 17 March, 2021 – “We Have a Target of Interest”
- Dayton Daily News, 23 March, 2021 – “Middletown Woman, Boyfriend Hog Tied 6 Year Old Son and Siblings”
- Journal-News, 28 April, 2021 – “More than a Confession is Needed”
- CBS – 7 WHIO, 16 August, 2021 – “Middletown Woman Pleads Guilty to Murder in Death of 6-Year-Old Son”
- Associated Press, 24 August, 2021 – “Man Pleads to Charges Related to Death of Girlfriend’s Son”
- Dayton Daily News, 13 September, 2021 – “Middletown Mother Gets Maximum Sentence for Killing 6-Year-Old Son”
- Dayton Daily News, 1 September, 2021 – “Bench Placed to Remember Middletown Boy”
Comments:
I don’t understand why these people act dumb, and then they’re given a lighter sentence.
20yrs + for the mother. How long for the father????????? Piss time.
Oh, ffs world, get your priorities right.
Do you really care?
It is completely illegal to leave children of there age unattended, let alone at night and in the middle of a vacant (from what I assumed was vacant, I read the second half of this just now) parking lot. Come to think of it, any minor shouldn’t be abandoned in a parking lot. Either way, if the mother ever gets out on parole, she should not be allowed to have children of her own.