The Misery Machine - The Case of Erica Green

Starting point is 00:00:00 Erica Michelle Marie Green was born on May 15th, 1997 in McLeod, Oklahoma, a city located 30 miles east of Oklahoma City. However, Erica was not born in the maternity ward of some local hospital or even in her own home with the help of a midwife. No. Erica was born in a prison, specifically the Mabel Bassett Correctional Center Hospital Unit. Erica's biological mother, a woman named Michelle Johnson, gave birth to the child five weeks into her prison sentence. Michelle had a long criminal history related to petty crimes and had been serving a small stint for larceny at the time Erica was born. The child's father, a man named Larry Green, was also incarcerated, although the reasons for his conviction is unclear. As a result, Erica was placed in the custody of a family friend named Betty Brown. When Erica's mother was ultimately released a few years later,

Starting point is 00:00:59 Michelle Johnson began dating a man named Harold Johnson. With the child's biological father out of the picture, Michelle and Harold fed off each other's sole desire to get high, both alleged users of crack as well as PCP. Meanwhile, baby Erica remained in Betty's custody. However, not for long. On Saturday, April 28, 2001, dispatchers with the Kansas City Police received a call regarding a mid-year-old.

Starting point is 00:01:26 an elderly man who had wandered away from his home. As the result of a welfare check, authorities began searching a wooded area near Hibbs Park located at 59th Street in Kensington Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri. While scouring the vicinity of where the old man was last seen, officers stumbled upon a completely separate and much more horrific scene. There, among the brush and leaves, local police discovered the nude and headless body of a child. The victim was described as a black female toddler. Her small body exhibited extreme bruising consistent with severe blunt force trauma. Due to the condition of her remains, an immediate identification of the child was unable to be made. Police searched the National Missing and Unidentified Person System database, but there were no reports

Starting point is 00:02:11 of a missing child consistent with the remains they discovered. Not knowing who this child was or how she had met such a horrific end, authorities chose to refer to the victim as precious dough moving forward, and the unexpected murder investigation into the child's death quickly ensued. A few days later, while scouring the same woods where the body was found, authorities came across an ashtray and a plastic garbage bag. Somehow authorities missed these items during their initial search, even though they were located roughly 200 yards away from where the body was found. Upon opening the trash bag, investigators ultimately located the child's decapitated head inside. The ashtray, which was initially believed to have been used during the commission of the

Starting point is 00:02:53 murder, lacked any forensic evidence whatsoever. The search for the child's identity stretched on, with police following leads that unfortunately led to dead ends. The brutality and mystery surrounding the crime quickly drew national attention. In efforts to find out who the child was, police released sketches and computerized facial reconstructions to the public, urging anyone with information on who the little girl was to come forward. The Unsolved Murder was also featured on TV programs like America's Most Wanted in Cold Case Files. Unfortunately, the case of Precious Doe remained cold for the next several years. Then, in April of 2005, a tip came in from an elderly man in Muskogee, Oklahoma.

Starting point is 00:03:42 That man was Harold Johnson's grandfather, Thurman McIntosh. After coming forward to authorities, Harold's grandfather told police that when the story first broke regarding a toddler found dead in the woods four years prior, he instantly became suspicious of his grandson and the child's mother. Thurman saw it as no coincidence that he hadn't seen baby Erica in the days leading up to the gruesome discovery in the woods. Grandfather told police that he confronted Harold about murdering Erica, and it was at this time that his grandson confided in him that the child was in fact dead, but it was an accident. For the next four years, the elderly man kept this information to himself. When asked why it took him so long to come forward,

Starting point is 00:04:27 Thurman told police that his guilty conscience had finally gotten the better of him. He explained that before he died, he wanted the whole world to know the truth, but it should be noted that the police originally turned Thurman away when he went to them, writing him off as a crazy old man talking nonsense. They wouldn't even do the bare miss. to see if his claim had any merit whatsoever. After repeated attempts of the police not taking him seriously, Thurman turned to Kansas City community activist Alonzo, Washington.

Starting point is 00:05:00 Through the help of Alonzo, the Kansas City police finally took Thurman's claim seriously and agreed to test Michelle Johnson's DNA. If Thurman had just given up in the face of the police turning him down repeatedly, it is possible that Erica's case would still be unsolved to this day. After gaining this information, authorities began to look further into the backgrounds of Michelle, Harold, and baby Erica. They quickly learned that, as we mentioned earlier, shortly after Erica was born, she was placed in the custody of a woman named Betty Brown when the biological mother Michelle was sent to prison. Michelle was released in April of 2001.

Starting point is 00:05:37 Authorities learned that she and her boyfriend Harold moved in with Harold's cousin, a woman named Lawanda Driscoll in Kansas City. When authorities tracked down Lawanda for questioning, she told him Harold and Michelle and Michelle, Michelle paid her $300 cash and $200 in food stamps to move into her home. Short time later, Luanda said Michelle got on a bus to Muskogee, Oklahoma to retain custody of Erica from Betty Brown. But after leaving the only caretaker of the child had ever known in her life, Luanda told police that Erica cried relentlessly after relocating to Kansas City. For only two weeks of having Erica, La Wanda told police that Michelle and Herald quickly became overwhelmed by the child's constant tantrums.

Starting point is 00:06:17 Mawanda went on to divulge that she had observed Herald physically beat the child on numerous occasions after that. She said that he repeatedly beat Erica for crying, wetting herself, and refusing to eat. One week later, Lwanda said she heard Harold threaten Michelle by saying, They quote, You better go take care of your daughter, or I'm going to do something bad. Luanda went on to say that moments later, she heard a loud bang coming from the baby's room. She told police that Erica remained in her room with the door closed,

Starting point is 00:06:47 over the course of the next two days. When Luanda asked Michelle and Harrow where Erica was, a couple told her that she was sick and needed to stay in her room while she rested. Shortly after, Michelle informed Luanda that baby Erica would be returning to live with Betty, the woman who previously cared for her. Luanda clarified to police that it was around the same time when she witnessed the child's mother, take Erica out of the home in a stroller, at which time she believed the child was simply just asleep.

Starting point is 00:07:14 Days later, Michelle and Harrow moved out of the apartment, around the same time that the news broke regarding a child's decapitated body found in Kansas City, and her head discovered a short time later. After digital reconstructions and police sketches were released to the public, Luanda contacted Erica's mother. Luanda told police that she then confronted Michelle and told her that the dead girl who police were calling precious dough looked a lot like Erica. However, Michelle denied any wrongdoing and insisted that Erica was fine.

Starting point is 00:07:45 She went on to tell her that Eric was not with Betty, but instead was in her custody. According to her statements of police, Luanda believed that the loud bang she heard coming from the child's room years before was the fatal blow that ended Erica's life. After that, the investigation went cold, and Michelle and Harold got married. In May of 2005, Harold and Michelle were arrested on unrelated, outstanding warrants for charges including stolen property as well as weapons and drugs. drug offenses. In addition, Harold was also wanted for assault after allegedly striking a man over the head with a brick. As a result, the couple was extradited to Missouri. On custody, Michelle made a full recorded confession to the police. According to Michelle, the night of her daughter's death was just an ordinary late April evening. She said the family returned home around 8 or 9 p.m. However, a short time later,

Starting point is 00:08:39 her husband, Harold Johnson, began using PCP and drinking alcohol. Eventually, Harold had become increasingly agitated with Michelle's three-year-old daughter Erica, whom he felt was being disobedient because she wouldn't go to sleep. Michelle told police that she entered a back room a short time later where she found Erica out of her crib, standing up with Harold standing over her. She'll claim she attempted to get Erica back into bed, but the situation escalated dramatically. Harold Johnson, fueled by drugs and anger, raised his foot, and kicked Erica in the head. Erica collapsed immediately, falling unconscious. According to Michelle, she panicked. Then picked up her child's limp body and rushed to the bathroom, desperately trying to revive her by placing her in cold water. Erica's eyes had

Starting point is 00:09:26 rolled to the back of her head and she became unresponsive. Shell told police that she and her husband both knew the child was in dire need of medical help, but out of fear of being arrested due to their outstanding warrants they never called for help. Instead, they chose to leave Erica helpless for the next 10 to 14 hours, resulting in the child's tragic and senseless death. Over those several hours, Michelle and Harold grappled with what they were going to do next. Eventually, they decided to dispose of the body in some nearby woods. Michelle told police that Erica was then tossed out a window. The couple then exited the home with a pair of hedge clippers in hand. They then retrieved the child's

Starting point is 00:10:06 body and carried Erica deeper into the woods. I asked him, what did he do? What did he say? He said that he caught her head off. Now, according to Michelle's statements, in a gruesome act, Harold proceeded to decapitate Erica with the hedge clippers. She said he had done this in hopes of preventing identification if and when the child's body was ever found.

Starting point is 00:10:31 Erica's head was first placed in a garbage bag and thrown into a dumpster at a nearby by church. The day after the murder, Michelle's cousin dropped by the home during an unexpected visit. When the cousin asked where Erica was, Michelle and Harold told her she was now staying with a woman named Betty Brown. The cousin didn't think much because Erica had lived with Betty Brown in the past while Michelle was in prison. Michelle told the police she and Harold went back to the dumpster to retrieve the trash bag days later, at which time they returned to the wooded area where Erica's body was and discarded her head a few hundred yards away. Whenever questioned about Erica's whereabouts by family members,

Starting point is 00:11:12 the couple claimed she was living with another family member or Betty. Michelle and Harrow followed the news coverage of precious dough very closely. After the child's body was discovered in the woods, Erica's mother, Michelle, handed out flyers regarding precious dough. She spoke with community activists and even cried publicly at a candlelight vigil for the then-unidentified girl, knowing full well that it was Erica all along. Erica's body remained undiscovered for several days following the murder.

Starting point is 00:11:42 Short time later, Harold and Michelle relocated Oklahoma. While the details of the crime were undeniably disturbing, Michelle had left out some extremely damning evidence in her confession to police. According to the autopsy report, Erica suffered multiple blows to her head, causing severe hemorrhaging in a blood clot in her brain. The examiner concluded that she was violently, kicked in the head several times. Herald and Michelle were originally charged with second-degree

Starting point is 00:12:08 murder along with endangering the welfare of a child, as well as CA resulting in death. A few months later, Harold Johnson's charges were upgraded to first-degree murder, and in December of 2005, state prosecutors announced their intent to seek the death penalty for the stepfather. The head of the trial, Harold and Michelle Johnson both entered pleas of not guilty. Herald also petitioned to have the case moved out of Kansas City. While behind bars, Herald had been informed that the victim's mother later was planning to change her pleaded guilty as part of a deal, in exchange for her testimony against him. After learning this information, Harold began writing letters to Michelle from jail,

Starting point is 00:12:44 begging her to change her story so he too could receive a lesser sentence. Here's an excerpt from one letter that he wrote to Michelle from jail before the plea deal. Michelle, we got to do what we got to do, together as one. We can beat this case and that's real talk. You've just got to do everything I ask you to do and listen to me. Another letter, which was inevitably recovered by jail staff, indicates what Harold's plan was that would, quote, beat the case. In an August 2007 letter, he urged Michelle to adopt a new version of events that contradicted their previous confessions, which was essentially a fabricated story involving a man named Mike Mike.

Starting point is 00:13:22 It was paid $35 to take Erica to a family friend in Oklahoma, and that after handing Erica over, they never saw her again. Harold continued to send Michelle letters. However, as time neared for him to stand before a jury, the tone of his writings changed drastically. Here's another letter that Harold wrote to Michelle just one month before his murder trial. Don't answer any questions you don't know. Send them to me. Look, that's something you need to keep in mind, because this is our way out of town. I'm going to write it out for you, the whole thing.

Starting point is 00:13:52 But you only need to remember the parts that's pertaining to you, okay? Despite Harold's best efforts, his former wife, 31-year-old Michelle Johnson pled guilty to child endangerment, abandoning a corpse, and tampering with evidence in 2007. She also acknowledged that she did not help her daughter Erica and that she left her to die that fateful evening in April of 2001. As for Harold, he was able to avoid the death penalty by withdrawing his request to be tri-out a state. When his murder trial began in April of 2008, the jailhouse letters were entered as evidence. Harold's lawyers argued, that there was insufficient evidence to prove he knowingly caused Erica's death with deliberation.

Starting point is 00:14:35 His defense claimed that his actions were not premeditated and that the decision to not seek medical aid for Erica was not sufficient for a first-degree murder conviction. For the prosecution, a forensic pathologist and a pediatric neurosurgeon both testified for the state. The two concluded that had Erica received prompt medical attention, she more than likely would have survived. tragically, the brutal assault and neglect by her mother and her mother's boyfriend led to the death of an innocent child's. As expected, Michelle Johnson took the stand as well. In her testimony, she admitted to her involvement in the crime while describing what her then husband Harold had done to Erica while high on PCP. She said, he just picked up his feet and kicked her on the side of the face. I said, what the fuck did you do? It shook him out of his high.

Starting point is 00:15:27 When Harold was allowed to address the court, he said the following. Never once have I harmed a hair on her head or did anything to hurt her. God knows my little angel, Erica, knows the truth. And I ain't going to stop fighting until I prove my innocence, and the truth is brought to the light. You know, you people don't know me. You just know what these people didn't cooked up and what I was forced to say. That's all you know. But never once have our...

Starting point is 00:15:57 I harmed a hair on her head or did anything to hurt her. The judge responded by calling Johnson a textbook sociopath who would not take responsibility for his actions. You committed acts that were ghoulish, vile, and by any measure revolting. Those thoughts were echoed by police sergeant Dave Bernard, who led the search to find the little girl's identity and then find her killer. I've dealt with these kind of people in my whole career. You know, there are people with souls in their souls. They just don't care anything about it but themselves. He wants to say he didn't have in his rights and how his rights were denied,

Starting point is 00:16:36 but he denied the rights of a three-year-old child. We don't have to worry about what's going to happen to him because at this point he's going to have to answer to the man upstairs. That's going to be his judge. In the end, Harold Johnson was found guilty and convicted a first-degree murder in the litany of CA-related charges against him. He was later sentenced to life without the possibility of parole, along with additional consecutive sentences.

Starting point is 00:17:00 A few months later, Erica's mother, Michelle, was sentenced to 15 years for murder, plus an additional 10 years for child endangerment. As the result of the plea deal, Michelle Johnson will be released for the murder of her three-year-old daughter after serving only 25 years. Several Oklahoma agencies have agreed to settle a lawsuit in the death of a young girl. Larry Green filed a suit against the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, the Department of Corrections and the University of Oklahoma Medical Center in 2001 for the death of his daughter, Erica Green.

Starting point is 00:17:31 The young girl's beheaded body was found in Kansas City, Missouri. She was known as precious dough until her remains were identified in 2005. Her mother and stepfather, Michelle and Harold Johnson, were convicted in her death and are currently serving out their sentences. Green will receive an unspecified payment in the settlement. Also, as part of the settlement, the agencies will develop procedures for DHS to find safe homes for babies born to mothers who are in prison. In 2013, Erica's biological father, Larry Green, successfully won a lawsuit filed against the Oklahoma Department of Corrections,

Starting point is 00:18:05 the Oklahoma University Medical Center where Erica was born, and the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. The court filing has since resulted in a new policy being implemented called Erica's rule. Back when Erica was born, the Department of Corrections was not required to notify the Department of Human Services regarding where the child would end up. up while the parents were incarcerated. As a result, Erica was allowed to be handed off to a family friend, who in turn handed the child back to Michelle Johnson after she was released from prison. Hospital and prison officials allowed Betty to take Erica after she signed a one-page form and presented her driver's license, as well as a Sam's club card. Tragically, Erica's blood is on the

Starting point is 00:18:45 state of Oklahoma's hands, but the worst of it wouldn't fully surface until the court documents of the lawsuit were publicly released. Lawsuit brought by Erica. Erica's biological father revealed that prison officials didn't check Ms. Brown's background or provide any guidance on how to care for Erica Green. It also blames DHS for Erica's death, arguing they knew or should have known, that her mother had a long history of substance use and child neglect. The lawsuit outlined several incidents, including two of her children suffering from CA in 1992, a child born with coke in 1993, and another baby testing positive for coke in 1995. While pregnant with Erica in 1997, DHS was alleged. aware of ongoing substance use by the mother. Mary Green, who was also incarcerated when she was born,

Starting point is 00:19:30 would be awarded an undisclosed monetary payment as a result of this lawsuit. Time. Oh, but she left, she said, I'll be back. From now on, those kisses will have to come down from heaven. The little girl we know as precious dough, Erica Green, was put to rest one last time at the Memorial Park Cemetery in Kansas City. Betty Brown helped raise little Erica. To be able to just touch what she's in, you don't know what it's like, but just to touch the cask,

Starting point is 00:20:06 knowing my baby's there. A handful of people attended the burial on this sun-drenched day, on Erica's headstone, a Cupid. We were looking for an angel, but when we saw this one, he's releasing the butterfly, we just kind of knew that that was it, you know, that she was free. Those who love her say they will never forget her. Prosecutors say Erica was beaten, then murdered by her parents. The Precious Doe Committee is trying to get a law passed in her honor. Anyone aware of child abuse, seen something, witness anything, they would be just as guilty and prosecuted as the next person.

Starting point is 00:20:43 Erica Green was buried in Memorial Park Cemetery in Kansas City in August of 2005. It was her second funeral, however, funeral, however, this time, precious dough finally had a name. More recently, in July of 2023, plans for a memorial installation were presented to the Kansas City Parks Board. The memorial is slated to be set between two benches currently standing at Hibbs Park, not far from where Erica's remains were discovered. Organizers plan to erect a 13-foot stone directly in front of the benches. The memorial will include Erica's full name, as well as the words, precious dough etched into the stone. The death of three-year-old Erica Green is one we see far too often,

Starting point is 00:21:28 which came as a result of not only the failures of the caretakers, but the state officials who are paid to protect the children as well.

The Misery Machine - The Case of Erica Green

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