Family of 8 indicted in starvation death of 14-year-old boy

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Several family members of a 14-year-old boy who died last year are facing indictments on first-degree felony murder charges.

According to the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office, a mother, her son and her six daughters are charged with murder in the perpetration of aggravated child abuse and neglect of 14-year-old Brandon Gray.

Investigators say the boy was found unresponsive on the living room floor by Bartlett police and pronounced dead Jan. 7, 2020. The autopsy showed Gray only weighed 60 pounds and died of starvation.

The police also found a 12-year-old girl who was malnourished and covered in bruises. She was taken to the hospital and treated for moderate malnutrition and bruises and scars on her body, according to the DA’s office.

The family members indicted include the victims’ mother, 36-year-old Terra Wells and their aunts, 30-year-old Tessa Dishmon, 35-year-old, Tamera Dishmon, 30-year-old Amanda Dishmon, 26-year-old Tabitha Sharp and 22-year-old Breanna Wells. The victims’ uncle, 32-year-old Melvin Wells, was also indicted.

The victims’ 60-year-old grandmother, Yvette Charleston, died May 13, prompting the dismissal of her charges.

The other seven are each being held on a $250,000 bond.

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