A Bradley County grand jury has indicted Jason Michael Bennett and Rodnie Elaine Bradford in connection with the death of 20-year-old Erin Childers, who authorities say was locked inside a 42-inch dog cage night after night before she died in May. Childers was non-verbal, developmentally delayed and lived with type 1 diabetes, conditions that made her entirely dependent on the adults caring for her.
The indictments, handed up on October 21, found Bennett and Bradford responsible for Childers's death, according to WTVC. Bradford is identified in court documents as Childers's mother. The station reports that Bradford bought the cage from a Walmart in Cleveland on May 8, and that she and Bennett then locked Childers inside it every night.
A Trip to Ohio and a Warning Text
According to the indictments, Bradford left for a trip to Ohio on May 25 and left Childers in Bennett's care while she was away. Childers continued to be locked in the cage at night even with Bradford gone, the documents state.
The next day, May 26, Bennett texted Bradford that Childers had high blood sugar and would not come out of the cage, per the same account. Bradford texted back instructions to open the cage, leave Childers alone, and give her water and crackers. The indictments say Bennett followed those instructions and still left Childers in the cage for the night.
Death Reported the Following Day
Childers died in a hospital in Chattanooga on May 27, according to her obituary as cited in the indictment materials. The documents do not spell out a specific medical cause of death tied to her confinement.
Bennett and Bradford were indicted on aggravated neglect of a vulnerable adult, conspiracy to commit aggravated abuse of a vulnerable adult, and conspiracy to commit aggravated neglect of a vulnerable adult. The pair are scheduled to be arraigned on November 2.
State Oversight of Vulnerable Adults
Cases involving the mistreatment of adults with disabilities fall under Tennessee's broader Adult Protective Services system, which is authorized to investigate abuse, neglect or exploitation of adults in any living arrangement, including private homes, according to the Tennessee Department of Human Services. The department's own workflow guidance says it investigates reports involving people 18 and older when there is an allegation of abuse or neglect by a caregiver.
