Montana mom pleads not guilty after disabled toddler found dead in pile of laundry

DILLON, Mont. (TCN) -- A 28-year-old Montana mother has pleaded not guilty to deliberate homicide after police discovered her disabled 3-year-old son’s body decomposing in a pile of laundry and trash, according to authorities. 

According to court records obtained by NBC Montana, Nichole Lynn Boyer told investigators she had stopped feeding her nonverbal, special-needs son several weeks prior because she was “overwhelmed” by caring for him, her other children, and her father.

Court records say Boyer called police on Oct. 16 to turn herself in, stating, “Just take me to jail.” Beaverhead County deputies arrived at her home and detected the odor of body decomposition immediately. 

Deputies say they then discovered the toddler’s decomposing body in an upstairs bedroom under one of his mother’s sweatshirts in a pile of laundry and trash. The records say, “The entirety of the home was in poor condition. The floor and surfaces throughout the home were covered in trash and rotten food, as well as animal urine and feces.”

The air conditioner was running even though the temperature outside was in the 40s. Boyer allegedly admitted that once her son died, she put him in a room and did not notify anyone or ask for help. 

Authorities said the boy had been in social services custody before and he was returned to his mother. Boyer reportedly told police she had “shut down” and stopped caring for the child. Investigators say she began keeping the child alone in a room in August and leaving food out so he could “army crawl” to it, since his spina bifida, hydrocephalus, and clubfeet prevented him from walking.

According to the affidavit, Boyer admitted that she had deliberately stopped caring for him. “I believe I should have done more,” she said. “My lack of not paying attention and prioritizing other things over him led to him dying.” 

The other children have been removed from the home.

Investigators are awaiting autopsy results to determine the toddler’s official cause of death. Boyer is being held on a $500,000 bond and her defense has requested a furlough if there is a ceremony in which the remains are interred.

If convicted, Boyer could serve anywhere between 10 and 100 years in prison.

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