6-Year-Old Hanged: No Foul Play Suspected, Investigators Say Suicide Is Possible, Close Case


The case of a 6-year-old girl found hanged in a Minnesota foster home has been closed by investigators, and the findings have indicated that there was no foul play in her death. According to Kare 11, Kendrea Johnson was found dead in her bedroom on December 27, about one year after being placed in foster care due her mother’s involvement with drugs.

Deputy Chief Mark Bruley said that the child was depressed, and had been seeking help for “emotional problems” and “suicidal thoughts.” Bruley said that investigators believe that Johnson’s death was “either suicide or an accident.”

According to the Star Tribune, the world may never know exactly what happened to Kendrea. And while it is certainly a possibility, many find it hard to believe that a child so young could take his or her own life.

“We just did our due diligence to tear this case apart and look at every angle. It’s hard to believe that it was even possible. We may never know if it was suicide or an accident,” said Officer Bruley.

The 6-year-old girl found hanged suffered from intense feelings of “severe guilt,” and an assessment she underwent in June claimed that she didn’t feel “lovable or acceptable.” These feelings are often present in children who end up in the foster care system (or away from their biological parents), though many children don’t express them in such a way.

“Her treatment included behavior therapy for post-traumatic stress syndrome, including anxiety and anger outbursts. At first, the report said, Kendrea had suicidal thoughts seven days a week, but they were down to five days a week just before she died.”

There are still many people who believe that Kendrea was murdered. As previously reported by the Inquisitr, there are some who believe a child that young couldn’t possibly carry out her/his own death. In fact, the medical examiner expressed a similar concern stating that this incident was something “outside what a normal 6-year-old could think about.”

One person who thinks that Kendrea was murdered is her grandmother. She was “stunned” to hear the conclusion of the case, and isn’t happy with the outcome at all.

“Somebody did it,” said Mary Lee Broadus, Kendrea’s grandmother.

Reports claim that her foster parents were also surprised by the news, despite the fact that Kendrea used to draw alarming photos at school.

“Kendrea also told her foster mother that she wanted to jump out a window and kill herself, said ‘Nobody likes me’ and drew pictures at school of a child hanging from a rope.”

Do you think Kendrea committed suicide?

[Photo courtesy of Kare 11]

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