ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Missouri –  On Friday, a St. Charles County woman pleaded guilty to second degree murder and child abuse charges in the death of her 4-month-old daughter. Twenty-six-year-old Jessica Lynn Howell’s daughter, Ashlynn Lilith Peters, died on Dec. 3, 2012 after she was allegedly sexually assaulted and strangled to death by Jordan Lafayette Prince, Howell’s boyfriend. Prosecutors say the night before the girl was assaulted and killed, Howell had taken Ashlynn with her to spend the night at Prince’s home. READ MORE HERE

A lesbian couple is facing 13 counts of child abuse after being accused of abusing their three children. Eraca Dwan Craig, 31, and Christian Jessica DeAnda, 44, of Salinas, California, reportedly starved and beat all three children, and chained the oldest girl, 8, to a wall so she could not get food. The 13 charges include child abuse, child endangerment, false imprisonment and torture. READ MORE HERE

Aldair Hodza and Laura Sorensen Arrested for Child Physical, Sexual Abuse

New Kent County, Virginia – Two Iowa-residents were arrested in New Kent on Tuesday for the apparent abduction and abuse of a young woman. The arrests occurred after a truck driver called the New Kent Sheriff’s Office reporting that he noticed suspicious activity at the Pilot gas station on Route 106 near I-64. The truck driver said he noticed a tan-colored RV parked behind the gas station. There was a man going in and out of the RV, and a woman peering out from inside the RV before the curtains were quickly shut, according to court records. READ MORE HERE

Jailed for 25-years over child porn so depraved it shocked veteran FBI investigators

Germantown, MARYLAND – A former federal cyber-security expert who used his professional skills to hide his membership of a ‘dark web’ child pornography ring called PedoBook has been jailed for 25 years. Timothy DeFoggi, 56, of Germantown, Maryland, joined a Tor-based website which featured images of child sex abuse believing that his activity would be completely anonymous. However, federal investigators discovered DeFoggi, who was the former acting director of cyber-security at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, joined the Tor-network-based website on March 2, 2012 until the site was taken down by the FBI on December 8, 2012. READ MORE HERE

UPDATE:  Teen shot brother after enduring years of abuse

FLORIDA – A 15-year-old girl and her 11-year-old sister have been arrested in Florida and charged with the murder of their 16-year-old brother, authorities said Tuesday. The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office said that Misty “Ariel” Kornegay, 15, grabbed a handgun from her parents’ bedroom and fatally shot her brother, 16, sometime before 10 p.m. Monday in the living room of their home, and that Ariel’s sister, 11-year-old Nicole Kornegay, helped in the crime. READ MORE HERE

NAMPA, Idaho—When a local nurse’s son was sent to the juvenile corrections center here at age 15, she was upset, but relieved that he would be away from drugs and gangs. The single mother said that the “night he went in, I felt bad, but I could sleep because he was safe.” But within months, the head of security at the state juvenile corrections center in Nampa struck up a sexual relationship with the teenager, according to police reports. Julie McCormick admitted to having sex with him three times in 2012 while he was incarcerated, the reports said. READ MORE HERE

Christopher Austin, who reportedly killed a hunter as both shot at the same deer two years ago, is now facing eight counts of child rape.

A Wales man accused of shooting and killing another man while hunting two years ago is now facing several counts of child rape. Christopher S. Austin, 43, was arrested Dec. 23 on eight counts of gross sexual assault, said Lt. Glenn Holt of the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office. All but one of the charges is a Class A felony, Holt said. The remaining charge is a Class B. READ MORE HERE

A Hendersonville foster father charged in September with raping a 12-year-old girl who was placed in his home by the Department of Children’s Services has been indicted by a Sumner County grand jury. Randy Louis Roe, 56, of New Shackle Island Road was arrested by Sumner County Sheriff’s Office deputies on Sept. 17 and charged with one count of rape of a child. READ MORE HERE

West Virginia — A 28-year-old Logan woman has been charged with child abuse resulting in injury. According to the criminal complaint, Logan Policeman R. Adkins received a call concerning an intoxicated person on Jan. 1. Upon arriving at the residence, Adkins was informed that Reanna Browning was arguing with her mother when Reanna’s 5-year-old son exited a bedroom crying. The grandmother reportedly told Adkins “she has threw” the child “around in the bedroom.” Adkins observed that the child had a cut on the back of his arm, and redness on the back of his shoulders. Browning reportedly told Adkins that the child had fell out of the bed. Adkins allowed Browning and the child to leave. READ MORE HERE

UNDERWOOD, Kentucky — A Clark County man faces child battery charges after a Scott County Hospital doctor contacted the Indiana State Police on Saturday. Christopher A. Bruck, 27, Underwood, has been initially charged with aggravated battery and neglect of dependent resulting in serious bodily injury, both level 3 felonies. READ MORE HERE

CALIFORNIA – Two well-developed human fetuses wrapped in a blanket have been found dead on the doorstep of a home in San Diego. The bodies – apparently twins – appeared to be five months along or older, paramedics told police. They were both attached to umbilical cords and one placenta. READ MORE HERE

A toddler was found dumped inside a recycling bin outside a house in Winnipeg in frigid temperatures, leading to charges against a 17-year-old who police say was responsible. Police in Winnipeg said the suspect was at a house party on Pritchard Avenue when a fight broke out and another person was chased from the home. With the toddler’s mother distracted by the fight, the suspect took the 22-month-old girl and ran from the home. READ MORE HERE

‘Minecraft’ Match Gone Wrong: Man Drove To Michigan With Butcher Knife To Meet Teen In Person

After meeting on the game Minecraft, a 14-year-old girl attracted the amorous attention of 25-year-old Glen Timberlake. The Texas man is currently in jail after he drove all the way to Michigan to attempt to meet the teen in person, after their long distance relationship became sexual in nature. However, the details of this case get more disturbing. The Midland Daily News reports that Timberlake and the unidentified teen met when the girl was only 12-years-old. The two had an online friendship for approximately two years, but it became sexual at some point. Glen Stephen Timberlake allegedly sent videos and photos of a sexual nature to the young teen. Reports indicate that at least one of the sexually explicit videos included a dog. READ MORE HERE