Police in Baltimore County discovered the decomposing remains of a 7-year-old girl and her 5-year-old brother in the trunk of a woman’s car during a routine traffic stop in July 2021. The driver—identified legally as Nicole M. Johnson—was later sentenced to 50 years in prison after pleading guilty to first-degree child abuse resulting in the deaths of the two children.
The discovery unfolded when officers pulled over Johnson for a traffic violation involving unregistered tags. They were alerted by the “unmistakable odor of decomposition” and began inspecting the vehicle further. What they found was horrifying: the already decaying body of her niece, Joshlyn, 7, hidden in a suitcase, and her nephew, Larry, 5, inside a plastic tote.
According to court records, Johnson had been caring for the children after their mother left them in her custody in 2019. In May 2020, Joshlyn allegedly suffered a serious head injury, and Johnson placed her body in a suitcase in the trunk. Two months before the traffic stop, Larry reportedly died of an injury while in the car and was placed next to his sister.
An autopsy highlighted severe neglect: Joshlyn weighed just 18 pounds and Larry weighed only 21 pounds at the time of their deaths.
In February 2025, Johnson received a sentence of life with all but 50 years suspended.