Gertrude Baniszewski; her oldest daughter, Paula; her son, John; and two neighborhood youths, Coy Hubbard and Richard Hobbs, were all tried and convicted in May 1966 of neglecting, torturing, and murdering Likens.

[6] In addition to the sporadic checks she received from her first husband — a former Indianapolis policeman — upon whom she primarily relied financially to support her children,[10] Baniszewski occasionally performed odd jobs for neighbors and acquaintances, such as sewing or cleaning in order to earn money.

[13] Lester and Elizabeth's marriage was unstable; they often sold candy, beer, and soda at carnival stands around Indiana throughout the summer,[14] moving frequently,[15] and regularly experiencing severe financial difficulties.

[2] In response, Gertrude began venting her frustration at this fact upon the sisters by beating their bare buttocks with various implements, such as a one-quarter-inch-thick (6.4 mm) paddle, making statements such as, "Well, I took care of you two little bitches for a week for nothing!

"[27][28] On one occasion, in late August, both girls were beaten approximately 15 times on the back with the aforementioned paddle, after Paula had accused the sisters of eating too much food at a church supper the household children had attended.

[29] By mid-August, Gertrude Baniszewski had begun to focus her abuse almost exclusively upon Sylvia, with her primary motivation likely being jealousy of the girl's youth, appearance, respectability, and potential.

[30] According to subsequent trial testimony, this abuse was initially inflicted upon Sylvia, after she and Jenny had returned to the Baniszewski residence from Arsenal Technical High School, as well as on weekends.

"[34] On another occasion, as the family ate supper, Gertrude, Paula, and a neighborhood boy named Randy Gordon Lepper force-fed Likens a hot dog overloaded with condiments, including mustard and spices.

[35][36] In what was Likens's only act of retaliation, she is alleged to have spread a rumor at Arsenal Technical High School that Stephanie and Paula Baniszewski were prostitutes because she was upset with the household singling her out for similar accusations.

However, when Stephanie's boyfriend, 15-year-old Coy Randolph Hubbard, heard of the rumor, he brutally attacked Likens; slapping her, banging her head against the wall and flipping her backwards onto the floor.

[43] With Gertrude's active encouragement, these neighborhood children routinely beat Likens,[44] sometimes using her as a practice dummy in violent judo sessions,[45] lacerating her body, burning her skin with lit cigarettes in excess of 100 times,[46] and severely injuring her genitals.

[53] A few days later, Gertrude repeatedly whipped Jenny with the police belt after she reportedly stole a single tennis shoe from the school to wear on her strong foot.

[22][53] Shortly after this incident, the father of a neighborhood boy named Michael John Monroe[49] phoned Arsenal Technical High School to anonymously report that a girl with open sores across her entire body was living at the Baniszewski household.

[81] After Likens had written this letter, Gertrude finished formulating her plan to have John Jr. and Jenny blindfold Sylvia, then take her to a nearby wooded area known as Jimmy's Forest and leave her there to die.

Likens jerkingly moved her arms in an apparent attempt to point at the faces of the tormentors she could recognize, making statements such as, "You're ... Ricky" and "You're Gertie" before Gertrude tersely shouted, "Shut up!

[90] In an attempt to wash Likens, a laughing John Baniszewski Jr. sprayed her with a garden hose brought to the house that afternoon by Randy Lepper at Gertrude's request.

[103] Five other neighborhood children who had participated in Likens's abuse — Michael Monroe, Randy Lepper, Darlene McGuire, Judy Duke, and Anna Siscoe — had also been arrested by October 29.

[111][n 9] Three weeks prior to the filing of the indictments against the five defendants, Stephanie Baniszewski had been released from custody upon a writ of habeas corpus bond, with her attorney successfully contending the state had insufficient evidence to support any murder or culmination of fatal injuries charges against her.

[92] At a formal pretrial hearing held on March 16, 1966, several psychiatrists testified before Judge Saul Isaac Rabb as to their conclusions regarding psychiatric evaluations they had conducted upon three individuals indicted in Likens's murder.

[115][117][n 10] Each prospective juror was questioned by counsels for both prosecution and defense in relation to their opinions regarding capital punishment being a just penalty for first-degree murder and whether a mother was actually responsible for the "deportment of her children."

[128] Duke also testified to one occasion where she witnessed 10-year-old Shirley Baniszewski rip open Likens's blouse, to which Richard Hobbs had made the casual remark, "Everybody's having fun with Sylvia.

[137] Another witness to testify on behalf of the prosecution, Grace Sargent, stated how she had sat close to Paula on a church bus and had heard her openly bragging about breaking her own wrist due to the severity of a beating she had inflicted to Likens's face on August 1.

"[142] William Erbecker was the first defense attorney to deliver his closing argument before the jury; he attempted to portray his client as being insane and thus unable to appreciate the severity or criminality of her actions, stating: "I condemn her for being a murderess, that's what I do, but I say she's not responsible, because she's not all here!"

Sidestepping the multiple instances of testimony delivered at trial describing Paula and her mother as by far the most enthusiastic participants in Likens's physical abuse, Rice claimed the evidence presented against his client did not equate to her actual guilt of murder.

[147] Outlining the catalog of mistreatment Likens had endured prior to her death at the hands of each of the defendants, New directly addressed criticism he had earlier received from Forrest Bowman in his closing argument regarding the prosecution "cross-examining children", stating: "The prosecutors' job is to present the evidence to the best of our ability.

He then speculated as to the reason Likens did not try to escape from the Baniszewski household prior to the abuse increasingly escalating in the final weeks of her life, stating: "I think she trusted in man ...

[157] On this occasion, Paula Baniszewski opted to plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter rather than face a retrial;[14] she was sentenced to serve a term of between two and twenty years' imprisonment for her part in Likens's abuse and death.

[167][4] Regarding Gertrude Baniszewski's death and the issues raised pertaining to her sanity at both of her trials, John Dean, a former reporter for The Indianapolis Star who had provided extensive coverage of the case, stated in 2015: "I never thought she was insane.

"[174] Shortly after their mother's arrest, the Marion County Department of Public Welfare placed Marie, Shirley, and James Baniszewski in the care of separate foster families.

Founded in 2010 in Lebanon, Indiana, and initially named the Boone County Child Advocacy Center, this non-profit organization was renamed in Likens's honor in 2016, with the executive director stating: "The most important thing that we can do is tell kids they are hurt and we are listening.