Lucas Allen Gross was a young child who died from catastrophic blunt-force injuries that medical examiners concluded were the result of child abuse. Treating physicians found he was in traumatic shock from multiple abdominal organ injuries; a CT scan showed his liver was nearly split in two, and massive blood loss led to cardiac arrest, brain damage, and death. A pathologist performing the autopsy documented widespread bruising on the scalp, brain, liver, pancreas, stomach, lungs, groin, and testicles, identifying major trauma to the head, trunk, and genitals and ruling the death a homicide.

A neuropathologist found subdural and shearing hemorrhages consistent with direct head trauma, and both specialists said a significant amount of force would have been required. The investigation produced charges against a man named Gross; it also uncovered prior allegations that he had physically abused the sons of two former girlfriends. Lucas’s mother, Amy, initially told police she saw Gross hit Lucas, later recanted, and in a subsequent statement said Gross suggested she claim Lucas had been struck by a car. While in custody for an unrelated matter, Gross later told police he had seen Amy strike Lucas.

Did anyone know Lucas’s routines, caregivers, or where he spent time in the days before his injuries?