Erica Lynn Parsons (February 24, 1998 – c. December 17, 2011) was a 13-year-old girl from Salisbury, North Carolina, who disappeared mysteriously in 2011.
Further investigation revealed Erica had not been seen alive since her disappearance in 2011, and police could not find evidence to support the existence of the grandmother, who relatives claimed was already deceased.
[1][3][4] In 2014, Casey and Sandy Parsons were convicted of fraudulently accepting federal benefits for Erica when she was not living with them.
[5] In September 2016, Sandy Parsons led authorities to Erica's remains in Chesterfield County, South Carolina.
[7] Casey Parsons pleaded guilty to first degree murder on August 2, 2019, in Rowan County Superior Court.
[8] Sandy Parsons also pleaded guilty, on December 17, 2019, to "second-degree murder, child abuse, concealment of death and obstruction" and was sentenced to at least 33 years.
[14][11] Casey Parsons described Erica and Goodman meeting at a McDonald's in Mooresville, North Carolina, in September 2011, followed by several further visits.
[15] Casey Parsons told Dr. Phil that Erica took none of her personal belongings with her because when she went to stay with Goodman, they had purchased all new clothing for her to wear.
When Goodman picked her up, a woman who goes by the nickname "Strawberry" was also there and showed them a stash of clothing with tags in the back of their van.
According to Jamie, Casey would often bend Erica's fingers backwards to break them, but deny her medical assistance, instead making homemade casts.
Federal prosecutor Anand Ramaswamy said there was no record of Erica during the time her adoptive parents illegally accepted money, claiming, "The reason is she's no longer alive."
[27] Schroeder "believes Casey was the brains behind what happened" and said Erica "endured horrific abuse", saying that the fraud distracted investigators from the other problems.
As part of the show, Sandy Parsons took a polygraph, and was considered "strongly deceptive" by the former FBI agent who administered the test.
[10] Their two youngest biological children were removed from the home by the Department of Social Services shortly after the criminal case against them began.
[32] In September 2015, an Illinois tracker dog company called K-9 Specialties came to Salisbury after being hired by local residents.
[33] On September 29, 2016, after another round of searches and questioning, Sandy Parsons led investigators to Erica's skeletal remains.
They were buried in a small grave near the home of Sandy's mother on Blair Hendrick Road, between the towns of Pageland and Mount Croghan, South Carolina.
[34][35] Before the discovery, detectives recovered items in the search of a shed on property belonging to Sandy, including: a video tape, a hammer, teeth, and school records.
"The treatment included, but was not limited to, locking Erica in a closet, beating her with a belt buckle, bending her fingers back and choking her", the warrant states.
Dr. Cynthia Brown of the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, characterized the treatment of Erica as "child torture."
The warrant also lays out exactly how investigators from Rowan County were able to locate Erica's remains in South Carolina.
The warrant states that in August, Sandy Parsons acknowledged to Rowan County Sheriff's investigator Chad Moose that Erica was dead.
Sandy Parsons said that the body was discarded on December 19, 2011, and that it could be found off Taylor Chapel Road in Pageland, South Carolina, near the home of his mother.
The North Carolina Office of the Medical Examiner reported that Erica died of "homicidal violence of undetermined means".
[6] The Rowan County Sheriff received the report January 9, 2018, and began the process of determining criminal charges.
[41] Casey Parsons pleaded guilty to first degree murder on August 2, 2019, in Rowan County Superior Court and was sentenced to life without parole.