Inset: Noah Wilson (NC SBI). Background, left to right: Joseph Paul Wilson and Jodi Ann Wilson (NC SBI).
A North Carolina couple will spend decades behind bars for killing their 4-year-old adopted son after leaving the boy restrained and duct-taped face down on the floor for hours until he ultimately suffered a fatal brain injury.
District 17A Superior Judge Angela B. Puckett on Wednesday ordered Joseph Paul Wilson and Jodi Ann Wilson to serve 32 to 40 years in a state correctional facility after they pleaded guilty to charges of second-degree murder, felony child abuse, and conspiracy to commit felony child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury in the 2023 death of Skyler Wilson, court records show.
Each was sentenced to 25 to 31 years in prison on the murder conviction, with the additional consecutive prison time stemming from the conspiracy convictions. Both were credited with about 3 1/2 years of time served.
As Law&Crime previously reported, Skyler was hospitalized after suffering catastrophic injuries on Jan. 5, 2023, and died Jan. 9, 2023. The Wilsons were arrested just days later.
According to the Surry County District Attorney's Office, the couple adopted disciplinary techniques from books about alternative parenting methods for adopted children but escalated those practices far beyond anything described in the material by using duct tape and prolonged physical restraint.
"The restraint occurred while Joseph Wilson was at work, but when he went home for lunch, he found Skyler restrained," the DA's office said in an earlier statement to The Mount Airy News. "Joseph Wilson did not release Skyler but left him in that condition and returned to work. Skyler was restrained to the floor by duct tape for several hours. When Skyler was finally released by Jodi Wilson, it became obvious that he was badly hurt and needed medical attention. Late in the afternoon, Jodi Wilson messaged her husband at work and said, 'Hurry home, I think I have hurt him.'"
Authorities said Jodi Wilson sent her husband a photograph showing the child wrapped in a sheet, face down, with duct tape securing the bedding to the floor before Joseph Wilson later called 911 to report Skyler was suffering a seizure. A detective reportedly overheard a woman in the background, later identified as Jodi Wilson, saying, "It's my fault."
Less than a month earlier, a former foster parent had reported concerns about the boy's treatment to authorities.
An autopsy determined Skyler died from a hypoxic-ischemic brain injury caused by compressional and positional asphyxia during the prolonged restraint, according to the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. The medical examiner also found starvation ketoacidosis contributed to his death, concluding the child was undernourished and physically weaker as a result.
Search warrants previously obtained by Greensboro, North Carolina, ABC affiliate WFMY further alleged that the Wilsons restrained and isolated Skyler while subjecting him to exorcisms.
The Wilsons also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit felony child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury and waived their rights to appeal as part of the plea agreements.