Woman Sentenced After Remains of Niece, Nephew Found in Trunk During Traffic Stop

A routine traffic stop in Essex, Maryland on July 28, 2021 turned into anything but routine after the officer on the scene reported smelling "the unmistakable odor of decomposition."

During that traffic stop, the remains of Joshlyn Marie James Johnson, 7, and Larry Darnell O'Neil III, 5, were found in Johnson's car. Both deaths were ruled homicides by unspecified means, according to Baltimore County Deputy State's Attorney Lisa Fox Dever.

On Tuesday, Nicole Michelle Johnson, 36, pleaded guilty in Baltimore County Circuit Court to two separate counts of child abuse involving the death of a victim younger than 13, per court records reviewed by the Dayton Daily News.

Johnson was sentenced to life in a state correctional facility, with all but 50 years of that sentence suspended, per Law & Crime. She was also ordered to have no contact with any person under the age of 18.

It was just after 11 p.m. when police pulled up behind Johnson's vehicle for speeding. The officer who pulled her over also reported finding that she had fake temporary tags on the vehicle, fake registration, and she was driving without a license.

While writing up her citations, the officer reported in the charging documents that when he was discussing having her car towed and possible court dates with Johnson, she allegedly replied, "It don't matter, I won't be here in five days," and, "Y'all going to see me on the news making my big debut."

She was advised she could remove any personal items from the vehicle before it was towed, per the officer, at which point Johnson purportedly started taking things out of the trunk. It was at this point the officer smelled decomposition and reported spotting maggots in a clear plastic bag.

The officer asked to see inside bags and a suitcase she'd attempted to cover up with a blanket, per the court filing. At this point, she reportedly removed the blanket and exposed a body inside the suitcase.

Johnson reportedly attempted to flee the scene, per the officer, but was apprehended. After homicide detectives were called to the scene, they discovered the second body inside of a plastic tote, according to court documents.

As police began to investigate the deaths of the two children, they uncovered that Johnson had been their primary guardian -- albeit not legally -- since 2019, when their mother, Dachelle Johnson, moved to Maryland from Dayton.

Dachelle reportedly told detectives that she'd tried to contact her sister many times but was unable to find her, per the Dayton Daily News.

She said that in March 2021, she'd made arrangements for her sister to get her children after finally tracking her down, but her sister never showed and she hadn't been able to get in contact with her since. Dachelle reportedly only learned where her children were when detectives informed her of their deaths.

A homicide detective detailed in their report that Nicole allegedly confessed to getting angry with Joshlyn in May 2020 and striking her multiple times, causing the child to hit her head on the floor.

She allegedly said she then put Joshlyn's body in the suitcase and in her car trunk.

As for her nephew Larry, Nicole told police that he told her he was tired approximately two months before the traffic stop and laid down to sleep, never waking up, per the court documents. She also allegedly detailed a wound on his leg, but did not say how he'd come by it.

Nicole allegedly told the detective that she'd put Larry's body in a tote and then placed him next to his sister's remains in her trunk. According to charging documents, Joshlyn's body was believed to have been in the suitcase for more than a year, per The Baltimore Sun.

After examining the remains, officials concluded that both children's bodies appeared emaciated, with the Sun reporting Joshlyn weighed just 18 pounds and Larry 21 pounds.

The Daily News reports that Baltimore County schools said the children were never students there. They were also never reported missing, and there was never any formal custody arrangement between Dachelle and Nicole. Officials at Dayton Public Schools told the outlet Joshlyn was a student from 2018-2019 until she was withdrawn.

Speaking with the Daily News, Dachelle's uncle James Phillips, who said he raised her from the time she was seven years old, said he'd been misled by Dachelle about his great niece and great nephew, with Dachelle telling him and his late wife that they were with her all this time.

"She would tell me the kids were all right and they were doing fine," he told the outlet. "But come to find out the kids weren't with her."

Phillips said that he and his wife Evelyn Phillips-Simon were heavily involved in the children's early years, with him remarking how Joshlyn would dote over her little brother. "They both were beautiful kids, and very lovable," he said.

Larry's paternal grandmother shared a similar story with the Sun of being told he was with his mother when he wasn't. She said that when her family would try to talk to the kids they thought were living with their mother in Ohio, they would be told they were sleeping or playing in the backyard.

Larry's father, Larry O'Neill Jr., was incarcerated at the time but looking forward to his release in a few months' time. His girlfriend, Johnniqua Carter, told the Sun that they had been discussing fighting Dachelle for custody.

"But the whole time we were talking about him, he was already gone," she said.

"She already had a GoFundMe up before we even knew," said Larry's grandmother, referring to a fundraiser set up by the family after the deaths of her children. "Nobody even told my son. His son was dead before he knew and it was all over the world."