A Maryland woman, aged 36, faces the prospect of spending a significant portion of her life in prison after being convicted for the murder of her 7-year-old niece and 5-year-old nephew. The children’s decomposed bodies were discovered in the trunk of her car during a traffic stop in 2021, where they had been kept for several months.
Nicole M. Johnson was ordered by a Baltimore County judge on Monday to serve a life sentence in a state correctional facility, with all but 50 years suspended. The sentence was for the murders of Joshlyn Johnson and her younger brother, Larry O’Neal. The Baltimore County State’s Attorney’s Office confirmed that Johnson was convicted on two counts of child abuse resulting in the death of a child under 13 years of age.
If Johnson is ever released, she will be required to serve five years of supervised probation and undergo mental health treatment. The court also stipulated that she should have no contact with any person under the age of 18.
The children’s bodies were discovered during a traffic stop conducted by officers from the Baltimore County Police Department’s Essex precinct around 11 p.m. on July 28, 2021. Johnson’s car was stopped on Eastern Boulevard near Wagners Lane, by the Back River. Johnson’s behavior during the stop led the police to make the horrific discovery.
Johnson’s car was uninsured, unregistered, and had a fake license plate, leading the police to decide to tow the vehicle. Johnson was asked to remove any items she might need from the car. During the conversation about potential court dates, Johnson made a strange comment to the officers, stating, “It don’t matter, I won’t be here in five days,” and “Y’all going to see me on the news, y’all going to see on the news making my big debut.”
Johnson then removed a plastic tote bag and a clear garbage bag from the trunk of her car. She tried to cover both bags with a blanket, but the officers noticed maggots in the clear bag and detected the smell of decomposition. The officers then found the bodies of Joshlyn and Larry in the suitcase and the plastic tote, respectively. Both children were severely malnourished, with the 7-year-old weighing only 18 pounds and the 5-year-old weighing just 21 pounds.
During a police interview, Johnson admitted to hitting Joshlyn multiple times in May 2020, causing her to fall and hit her head. When Joshlyn remained unresponsive, Johnson said she put her in the suitcase and kept her in the trunk of the car for several months. Johnson claimed that Larry had died in his sleep about two months before her arrest.
Johnson had initially started caring for her niece and nephew because their biological mother was unable to do so. However, they had arranged for the children to be returned, but Johnson failed to show up to the meeting. The children’s mother only learned about her kids’ whereabouts after police informed her of their deaths.