Twin Cities Woman Killed 6-Year-Old Son With Shotgun: Prosecutors

MOUND, MN — A 28-year-old woman from Spring Lake Park is accused of killing her 6-year-old son.

Julissa Angelica Genrich Thaler faces one count of second-degree murder with intent – not premeditated. She was taken into custody Friday and bail set at $2 million. If convicted, she faces up to 40 years in prison.

The child was identified by family members as Eli Hart. Family members told the Star Tribune that the boy's father, Tory Hart, was trying to win custody of his child at the time of Eli's death.

Hart had been in Dakota County foster care for almost a year because his mother did not take proper care of him, the Tribune reported, citing interviews and court records. However, the boy was placed back with his mother in December, despite objections from the foster parents, the paper said.

On May 20, Mound police officers pulled over Thaler driving a Chevrolet Impala straight on its rim without one front tire, according to the criminal complaint.

Police determined the car was not safe and ordered it to be towed. Before that could happen, officers searched the trunk and found the body of a child who had been shot, prosecutors said.

However, by that time, officers had already released Thaler from the scene. Police went to Thaler's apartment, but she was not there. Thaler's washing machine had been left running and contained the clothes she had been wearing during the traffic stop, according to the criminal complaint.

Officers found Thaler leaving the area on foot and arrested her. She still had blood and apparent brain matter in her hair, prosecutors said.

Officers later searched the dumpster of a gas station where her car had been spotted before the traffic stop. In the dumpster, they found a backpack, blood, bone, what appeared to be brain matter, and a child's bloody booster seat, according to the criminal complaint.

A preliminary autopsy found that the child was shot "possibly up to nine times including shots to the torso and head," prosecutors said.