Inset: Susan Robinson (Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office). Background: The North Carolina home where 6-year-old Dominique Moody was severely abused and killed (Google Maps).
A court-appointed guardian in North Carolina has been accused of fatally abusing a child she was ordered to take care of, with police saying she and two other adults living with her "duct taped" and starved the 6-year-old for over a year, as "punishment for many things," including eating. The girl was also "forced to stay in a dog crate," according to cops.
Susan Robinson, 61, was arrested Saturday and charged with one count of intentional child abuse resulting in serious physical injury and four counts of misdemeanor child abuse. The other adults in the Mecklenburg County household, Tonya McKnight and Tery'n McKnight, are wanted.
Police say the trio was living in horrid conditions with at least five children and was serving as their primary caregivers. The 6-year-old victim, Dominique Moody, died earlier this month and hospital staff reported she weighed only 27 pounds, according to an arrest affidavit. The other kids are ages 5, 4, 2, and 1.
"Tery'n McKnight, Susan Robinson, and Tonya McKnight … are the primary caregivers," the affidavit alleges. "The unkempt and inhospitable state of the residence, the children residing amongst rats and cockroaches, the children being bitten by rats, the residence's daily lack of heat, and the duct taping are well known to all three individuals."
According to police, photos obtained from a suspect's phone show Dominique "duct taped with black duct tape, her hands and feet swollen, lying on the carpeted area of the living room" before her death.
Robinson and the others allegedly abused Dominique for approximately a year and a half, doing things like forcing her to watch them eat as she sat in a "soiled, urine and feces-filled diaper for days and days," the affidavit says. The girl had an "extreme rash" because of this and was found to have multiple serious injuries, including wounds from the rash, broken bones, scars, and burns, according to police.
"The victim was extremely small," the affidavit says. "She had a healed ligature mark going all the way around her right ankle and linear healed scars on top of her right arm. On top of her right foot and outer right leg were healed circular scars. The victim had an open circular wound on the outer left ankle, which appeared to be a burn. She had various minor open wounds on her knees, face, arms, and legs."
An examination of Dominique's body showed a "fracture to the right pinky toe, which was older and healed," according to police. She also had multiple lower rib fractures on both sides of her body.
"These fractures were newer, but in various states of healing," the affidavit says.
"Susan advised that she has seen Dominique Moody, duct taped, left without food, in soiled diapers, for days, and refused to assist, call 911, or report that abuse and neglect," the document adds. "The residence was cluttered, and numerous rats were scurrying through it. The residence had a mixture of animal and human feces throughout."
According to police, the oven in the kitchen, a space heater in the living room and a space heater in a bedroom were the only sources of heat for the children. The space heater in the living room sat on a concrete block on the floor, pointed towards a cot in front of a couch.
"The low temperature during overnight hours was 20 degrees," the affidavit says.
Robinson was court-appointed by the Department of Social Services, which did not respond to Law&Crime's request for comment Monday. She was ordered held without bail on Monday and is due back in court on Jan. 9, 2026.
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