Michigan parents charged in 7-year-old son's death from severe neglect

A Genesee County judge ordered Damien and Jessica O'Brien to undergo competency evaluations before trial as prosecutors continue second-degree murder, torture and child abuse charges in the death of their 7-year-old son, Casper O'Brien. The parents, who remain held without bond in the Genesee County Jail, were arrested after a monthslong investigation into conditions inside their Flint Township home.

Casper died on Nov. 4, 2025, after his mother called 911 and said he had stopped breathing. Paramedics took him to Hurley Medical Center in Flint, where he was pronounced dead. The Genesee County Medical Examiner’s Office determined the cause of death was dilated cardiomyopathy, with morbid obesity listed as a contributing factor. Casper weighed 255 pounds at the time of his death, and his reported height of 4 feet, 2.5 inches meant a healthy weight range would have been far below that figure.

Prosecutor David Leyton called the case one of extraordinary, terrible neglect, saying Casper was not getting the nutrition he needed. The Genesee County Prosecutor’s Office charges Damien O’Brien, 40, and Jessica O’Brien, 41, with five criminal counts each: second-degree murder, torture and three counts of second-degree child abuse.

Authorities called the home a hoarding scene and the conditions deplorable. The family’s 5-year-old daughter also lived there. Neither child had been to school and both were rarely taken to doctors.

A probable cause hearing or conference is scheduled for Thursday, July 3, 2026, in 67th District Court.