A 59-year-old Ohio man, William Turnage, will spend more than a decade in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter in connection with the 2024 death of his girlfriend’s autistic son, 16-year-old Jeremiah Moore. Turnage left Jeremiah to starve to death while tied in a 56-degree basement.
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As reported by The Cincinnati Enquirer, Turnage pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and endangering children on July 31. The plea agreement had a murder charge against him dropped, and he will testify against Tamara Moore, the 53-year-old mother of Jeremiah and Turnage’s girlfriend at the time.
While a plea agreement was reached, the prosecution asked for the maximum sentence to be imposed. William Turnage was, however, sentenced to 11 to 15 and a half years in prison.
Boy Found Dead
As reported by WXIX, citing the Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office, the 16-year-old was found dead on February 6, 2024. At the time, Jeremiah was found chained to a cot, and no food was found in his digestive tract.
Hamilton County Assistant Prosecutor Jaqueline Stachowiak added in court that Moore was found on a cot inside a basement utility closet. He was only wearing a T-shirt in a 56-degree room. Additionally, a dog collar was found underneath his bed, and an autopsy found marks on the boy’s neck.
“Words alone cannot describe the level of depravity displayed by these two defendants,” Hamilton County Prosecutor Melissa Powers said at the time. “My heart breaks for this little boy. He was treated worse than an animal, forced to live in a basement closet unwanted, unloved, and denied the most basic of necessities.”
According to Springfield Township Police, Jeremiah was autistic and non-verbal. He relied entirely on adults. Before his death, he was cared for by his maternal grandmother, Turnage, and his mother, Tamara, as per The Enquirer.
Everything changed when his grandmother passed, and prosecutors alleged he stopped receiving the care he needed.
While Turnage explained in court that he wasn’t fully aware of Jeremiah’s abuse, the judge wasn’t having any of it. Judge Jody Luebbers told him, “You’re going to have to live with this for the rest of your life.” Luebbers also called him “nothing but a monster.”
Tamara Moore is currently facing murder charges. Her trial will begin on September 29.