How Could You? Hall of Shame-Sophie Heather Gray and Jonathan Gray cases-Child Deaths UPDATED

This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.

From Ten Mile, Tennessee, adoptive couple Michael Anthony Gray Sr., 63, and Shirley Ann Gray, 60 “are charged in a horrific child abuse case involving at least four young children at their home in Ten Mile, a small community in Roane County that sits 55 miles southwest of Knoxville.”

“Knox County Sheriff’s Office investigators returned to a home owned by an adult son of a couple who face a slew of child abuse charges after the skeletal remains of a young girl were found in their backyard in a neighboring county.

Authorities were conducting an investigation Thursday at a home on Cedarbreeze Road in Halls that is owned, according to property records, by Michael Anthony Gray Jr.”

“The couple face charges including aggravated child abuse, especially aggravated kidnapping, aggravated child neglect and abuse of a corpse. The four victims, now aged 11 to 15, are not the Grays’ biological children, but the couple had legal custody of them, according to 9th Judicial District Attorney General Russell Johnson.

At the home in Halls on Thursday, investigators could be seen removing bags of evidence, electronic devices and paperwork from the house. Three deputies stood watch at the front door as officials worked in the back yard. The Roane County Sheriff’s Office also was on the scene.

Knox County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Kimberly Glenn confirmed investigators first went to the house on Saturday, and that the investigation continued Thursday. She said she could not provide further details.

“Ethical rules prohibit the DA’s Office from commenting on pending investigations,” said Knox County Assistant District Attorney General Sean McDermott.

Authorities have not announced additional charges in the case. Investigators left the Halls home around 3:30 p.m. Thursday. Then Michael Gray Jr., who had been coming and going from the house throughout the day, packed up a vehicle and drove away.

Warrants: Children locked in basement, fed bread and water

The investigation into Shirley and Michael Gray Sr. began over the weekend when passers-by told authorities they found a child alone near the couple’s home on Dry Fork Valley Road in Ten Mile.

Michael Gray Sr. later admitted to Roane County Sheriff’s Office investigators and state Department of Children’s Services officials that he buried an approximately 11-year-old girl in a pole barn in the back yard of the home after she died in 2017.

The girl was locked in the basement early that year as punishment for “stealing” food, according to arrest warrants. She was given only bread and water, and she died within a few months. The Grays kept her body in a cardboard box until a grave could be dug.

Authorities found human remains under the barn early Saturday. The remains were taken to the Knox County Regional Forensic Center for an autopsy.

Deputies also found the oldest surviving child, a 15-year-old boy, in the unfinished basement of the home, where he apparently had been confined for four years, according to arrest warrants. The basement was partially flooded, lacked electricity and running water, and had no bathroom. It was filled with garbage, human and animal feces, and mold.

The Grays, believed to be from the area of Meridian, Mississippi, locked the boy in the basement within a month of moving into the Ten Mile home in June 2016. He was being punished for taking food from the pantry and refrigerator, the warrants state.

“(The child) was confined to the unfinished basement since this date and had no contact with anyone outside the basement, only given small amounts of food, being white bread and some water,” the warrants read.

At least one other child periodically was kept inside a wire dog cage in the basement until the Grays constructed a small, concrete room — measuring approximately 3 feet by 4 feet — under the stairs for confinement.

None of the children, who were supposedly home-schooled, had received medical attention for at least the past six years. The kids appeared to be “stunted in growth,” according to the warrants.

“(Two of the children) appear to have no formal education,” according to the warrants, “and were, in fact, amazed by what a refrigerator does when they observed one in their foster home.”

The surviving children were taken into state custody.

Shirley and Michael Gray Sr. each remained jailed Thursday on a $500,000 bond. A preliminary hearing in the case tentatively has been set for June 9.

The investigation is ongoing, and Johnson said additional charges are expected once the autopsy on the human remains is complete and a cause of death is determined.”

Investigation underway at home owned by son of couple charged in Roane County child abuse case

[Knox News 5/28/2020 by Hayes Hickman and Travis Dorman]

“Two adopted children who were in the custody of a Roane County couple are dead after remains were found buried in the backyard at a Halls home, a warrant shows.

One neighbor told WVLT News Anchor Amanda Hara that he remembers the children for the conversations they had.

“Well there were two little girls and they were older than the little boys. The girls could hold conversation just like the adults. Especially the oldest one,” said Homer Johnson.

Johnson said the boys that lived in the home were very quiet, but seemed to want attention, “They never had much to say, but they were always wanting somebody to love them.”

When it came to the adults living in the home, Michael Gray Sr., Shirly Gray, Michael Gray Jr. and his male partner, Johnson only had one word to describe them, “weird”.

Johnson said he never had much conversation with the adults because they were ‘hard to talk to’.

Another child was found dead at the couple’s current home in Roane County on May 22.

The Department of Children’s Services released a statement about the case on Friday afternoon:

“Words are inadequate. Cruelty such as this makes us question all that we know to be true. I am so grateful to the passersby who saw a child in a situation that just didn’t seem right and stopped to help. That one small action led to the discovery of children who were victims of severe abuse and neglect. Those children are now in a safe place and being cared for and their parents face significant criminal charges. I am also thankful for our DCS child protective services staff who worked together as a team, followed their instincts to dig a little further when first notified of the situation and immediately alerted law enforcement. State privacy protection laws prohibit me from providing specific details of this open case, but rest assured, we will continue to work with law enforcement and the district attorney as they continue the criminal investigation and justice is served,” said Commissioner Jennifer Nichols.

The Halls home’s current resident is the couple’s adult son, Michael Anthony Gray, Jr. Investigators said they believe Gray Jr. was aware of the abuse and deaths.

Records show a cell phone was seized from Gray Jr. that contained messages saying “Hey, do I need to put [redacted name] and [redacted name] on the census? I don’t know if they share info with the IRS …”

Investigators say they believe the evidence shows Gray Jr. was aware of the abuse despite telling authorities he was not.

WVLT News Reporter Robert Grant on Thursday watched as officials spent the day carrying boxes and bags from the home. By early afternoon, officials backed a large white trailer into the driveway of the home, possibly to store collected evidence.

A warrant shows multiple items were taken from the home, including an iPad, a Nintendo Switch, a Nintendo Wii, laptop computers and multiple iPhones.

Wednesday, neighbors told WVLT News they watched Knox County Sheriff’s Office deputies investigate the home in Halls that property assessor officials said belongs to Michael Anthony Gray, Junior. Records indicate he’s the son of the Roane County couple charged in the death of their young daughter, who died after reportedly being kept confined to a basement for months and was fed only bread and water.

Michael Anthony Gray, Sr., 63, and Shirley Gray, 60, were charged after a three-day investigation led officers to find the skeletal remains of a child behind a home in Roane County. Investigators said the couple admitted that the 11-year-old girl had died in 2017, and they buried her in the backyard.

A neighbor told WVLT News that officials were at the home on Cedarbreeze Road in Halls early Saturday around 1:30 a.m. and that the coroner was on scene. Neighbors said they observed officials place something in the back of the coroner’s vehicle. They also said they saw one marked Knox County Sheriff’s Office vehicle. Neighbors said that they remembered the Roane County couple living there before the son moved in.

Later that morning, neighbors said officials had equipment digging up the backyard. On Sunday, neighbors said officials were back and were taking things from the home.

The owner, Michael Anthony Gray, Junior, hung up when WVLT News called for information. The Knox County Sheriff’s Office confirmed it has an active investigation but would not confirm further details.

Knox County Assistant District Attorney Sean McDermott told WVLT News Anchor Amanda Hara, “Ethical rules prohibit the DA’s Office from commenting on a pending investigation.”

When WVLT News called Roane County DA Russell Johnson on Wednesday, his office said he was meeting with Knox County officials.”

Second child’s remains recovered in connection to Roane Co. child abuse case
[WVLT 5/30/2020]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update:“The process of adoption in Tennessee has been called into question after investigators found the bodies of two adopted children on two different East Tennessee properties.

Michael and Shirley Gray are accused of abusing, starving and eventually burying two of their adopted children, according to warrants filed by the Knox County Sheriff’s Office.

A young girl, 13-year-old Sophie Heather Gray, was found buried behind a home in Roane County where the parents, Michael and Shirley Gray, lived with their four adopted children. A young boy, Jonathan Gray, was found buried behind a home in Knox County’s Halls neighborhood where the couple previously lived with their five adopted children and their biological adult son.

According to the warrant, the Grays continued to receive adoption benefits from the state of Tennessee even after the children died. Tennessee does not provide subsidies to families who adopt children outside the state.

The couple has three surviving underage adopted children who have since been removed by the state. Investigators said some of those children detailed horrible living conditions like getting locked in cages and fed only bread and water for extended periods of time.

The case prompted people across the state and country to question how Tennessee ensures the safety of children after an adoption is finalized.

WVLT News Anchor Amanda Hara discovered that once a child is adopted in Tennessee, oversight by the state largely stops.

“Once a court finalizes an adoption, the parents become the legal parents of the children in every sense of the word. Without an allegation of abuse or neglect, the state has no legal authority to monitor the children any further, just as the state would not have the authority to do so for any other family,” according to Tennessee Department of Children’s Services Commissioner Jennifer Nichols.

Tennessee does not check in with families once an adoption is finalized. However, it does continue to pay out monthly financial benefits.

According to a warrant, Michael and Shirley Gray never reported the deaths of their adopted children yet they “continued to receive adoption payments from the State of Tennessee as well as other assorted financial benefits on behalf of the deceased children.” The warrant further states the couple received additional benefits for the remaining children who were “confined in the basement of the Roane County home.”

So, how much money does an adoptive parent or family receive from the state of Tennessee? Per child per day, the amount can range anywhere from $25.33 up to $60 in cases where extreme medical or mental health care is required, according to a spokesperson for Tennessee DCS.

“The subsidy amount is approximately the same as foster parents receive to reimburse them for the costs associated with caring for foster children. When a child is adopted from foster care, the subsidy is paid at least through the child’s 18th birthday, and in some special needs cases until the child is 21 years old,” said Commissioner Nichols.

WVLT News asked DCS to explain why Tennessee would pay subsidies to a family but would not require periodic welfare checks to ensure the safety of the adopted child or take steps to ensure adopted families are spending the money appropriately.

Commissioner Nichols reiterated that the state has no legal authority to monitor a child after adoption unless an allegation of abuse or neglect is levied.

All states provide a subsidy to adoptive families once a child is adopted. The amount of money can range from state to state and from child to child, based on income and whether a child has special needs, according to Josh Kroll, project coordinator for Adoption Subsidy Resource at the North American Council on Adoptable Children.

So how does Tennessee ensure a child’s safety before adoption? As a ‘foster to adopt’ state, families must foster for at least six months before qualifying for adoption. From there, a spokesperson for DCS said a rigorous pre-screening process ensues, including background checks, fingerprinting, and home visits conducted by the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services.

“This comprehensive process includes a state and national criminal history fingerprint check through the TBI and FBI; a financial background check in order to validate a prospective foster parent’s financial ability to care for a child or children; and a home study to be completed by a licensed social services agency professional,” said Commissioner Nichols.

Foster parents are required to complete an eight hour adoption-prep training, on top of 36 hours of foster parent training, and foster for six months, according to a spokesperson. Those steps must be completed before an adoption is approved.

Before an adoption is complete, DCS will periodically check in on a child during its time with a foster family. Case managers are required to visit at least twice a month, including the time leading up to an adoption, according to Commissioner Nichols.

After a family commits to adopting through DCS, they are required to attend a training program offered by Maryville based Harmony Family Center

The Adoption and Guardianship Preparation Training (AGPT) is an 8 hour course developed by Harmony in 2007. In 2019, more than 1,100 caregivers attended the course, according to CEO Kate Trudell.

She told WVLT News Anchor Amanda Hara that the AGPT courses became mandatory in the last three years and a search of records revealed Michael and Shirley Gray did not receive any services from Harmony.

Once adoption is complete, the state is largely removed from the equation.

“DCS has strong adoption support services in place for adoptive families. However, these services are available only at the request of the adoptive family. It is the decision of the adoptive parents whether or not to accept support services,” said Commissioner Nichols.

Some of those optional, post-adoption therapeutic and educational services are offered by Harmony Family Center in Knoxville to families that have adopted through the welfare system. The services are free and include in-home therapy, parent education training, crisis intervention, case management, support groups, animal assisted therapy and family camps.

In 25 years, Harmony has served more than 125,000 children and families. On average, it services about 800 families per month.

While the services provided by Harmony Family Center are not mandatory, Trudell points out they are beneficial. “The national adoption disruptive rate is between 10-12 percent, while the disruption rate among post-adoptive families who have received services through our ASAP (Adoption Support and Preservation) program is one percent,” said Trudell.

While Tennessee’s DCS has provided basic information about how the foster and adoption processes work, officials cite child privacy protection laws as the reason for not commenting on the details of specific cases. That includes the case against Michael and Shirley Gray.

“Words are inadequate. Cruelty such as this makes us question all that we know to be true… Those children are now in a safe place and being cared for and their parents face significant criminal charges…State privacy protection laws prohibit me from providing specific details of this open case, but rest assured, we will continue to work with law enforcement and the district attorney as they continue the criminal investigation and justice is served,” said Commissioner Jennifer Nichols.

In the Roane County case, both Michael and Shirley Gray face eight charges: two counts of Especially Aggravated Kidnapping; two counts of Aggravated Child Abuse; three counts of Aggravated Child Neglect and a single charge Abuse of a Corpse.

As of the filing of this report, charges had not been filed in the Knox County case.”

Couple’s 2 adopted kids found dead; Tenn. adoption process questioned

[WVLT 7/8/2020 by Amanda Hara]

Update 2:“A Tennessee couple who were arrested after authorities found not one but two children’s skeletons buried on their property pleaded not guilty on Monday to numerous charges, ranging from abuse to murder, regarding their adopted kids.

Michael Gray Sr., 63, and Shirley Gray, 60, were arraigned on the 42-count indictment handed down last week by a Roane County grand jury, the Associated Press reported.

They had been arrested in May after a passerby called 911 upon seeing a little boy walking alone on the side of the road in Roane County. Further searching revealed a 10-year-old girl’s skeletal remains. Still others, it turned out, had been kept in cages and locked in the basement.

Tennessee couple arrested after girl’s skeleton was uncovered in backyard also kept other children in wire cages

After the girl died, the pair did not notify authorities but continued cashing state benefit checks, AP said.

According to one legislator, they allegedly raked in $36,000 a year from the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services, WBIR-TV reported in June, citing State Sen. Ken Yager (R-Kingston). The five adopted kids were locked in the basement and starved. Two died.

A boy’s remains were also found, though in a separate location in another county, WBIR reported in May.

Two other children spent time in a wire dog cage, while all were supposedly home-schooled and appeared to be “stunted in growth,” according to warrants cited by AP.

The couple’s not-guilty plea was solely on the charges they face in Roane County, AP noted. The case in Knox County, where the boy’s remains were found, is still being investigated and no charges have yet been filed.

The couple are due back in court in December.”

Tennessee couple who buried adopted child’s body on their property and kept kids in cages plead not guilty
[MSN 10/26/20 by Theresa Braine]

Update 3:“A Tennessee man has been charged with murder and abuse involving children his parents adopted — just days after his parents pleaded not guilty to similar charges, according to a published report.

A Knox County grand jury handed down charges Wednesday against Michael Anthony Gray Jr., 40, that included felony murder, aggravated child abuse, aggravated child neglect and abuse of a corpse, WBIR-TV reported. It wasn’t immediately clear whether Michael Gray Jr. has an attorney.

Gray was charged with murder after investigators found a boy’s remains buried in the yard of a home where he lived with his parents and several adopted siblings. Gray’s parents have been charged with murder in the death of a girl whose remains were found on property owned by the family in Roane County. The Roane County case led authorities to search the Knox County property.

Michael Gray Sr., 63, and Shirley Gray, 60, pleaded not guilty Monday in Roane County to the murder charge and dozens of other crimes, including abuse.

Authorities began investigating the family in May after a little boy was spotted walking alone along a Roane County road. Arrest warrants state that a passersby called 911, and a responding officer began asking questions. Investigators quickly discovered a girl’s skeletal remains in a barn at the Roane County property, after which Michael Gray Sr. confessed to burying her there. She had been locked in the basement for a few months before her death in 2017, while a 15-year-old boy was locked in the basement for four years, according to the warrants.

Michael Gray Sr. told authorities that the girl was about 10 when she died. Two other children spent time in a wire dog cage, while all were supposedly home-schooled and appeared to be “stunted in growth,” according to the warrants. The state Department of Children’s Services removed three children, ages 11 to 15, from the home on the day the couple were arrested.

The elder Grays are also facing a theft charge. Authorities say they didn’t report the girl’s death and kept receiving state benefits for being her adoptive parents.”

Man charged in case involving slain, abused adopted children

[ABC News 10/29/2020 by AP]

Update 4:“Lawyers said Friday the couple accused of abusing several adoptive children and killing two of them will be tried first in Roane County and then later in Knox County for their alleged crimes.

Also Friday, a Knox County judge declined to reduce the bond for the couple’s adult biological son, who is accused along with his parents of killing an adoptive child and abusing several others at his Knox County home.

Michael Anthony Gray Jr., 40, is being held in lieu of $500,000 bond.

Criminal Court Judge Scott Green said the amount isn’t unreasonable considering he’s accused of felony murder and other crimes. Gray and his parents, Michael Sr., and Shirley Gray have been indicted by a Knox County grand jury on counts of first-degree murder, felony murder, aggravated child abuse and other felonies.

Defense attorney Scott Lanzon sought to get his client out of jail, arguing he’s been a law-abiding citizen, has no passport to flee the country and is innocent of the murder counts. He said Gray Jr. would be willing to wear a GPS tracking device while free.

“This is going to be a long haul,” Lanzon told Green. “My client is innocent.”

Knox County Assistant District Attorney General Nate Ogle, however, said the state has ample proof to show Gray Jr. was a party to the abuse of his parents’ adoptive children.

The parents lived in the lower level of Gray Jr.’s Halls house on Cedarbreeze Road from about 2011 to 2016, Ogle said. Four or five adoptive children lived downstairs with them.

While they were there, one of the children died, allegedly from abuse. Someone buried the child, named Jonathan, in the yard of the home in 2015 or 2016.

Ogle said two of the surviving children have already implicated Gray Jr. in the crimes.

Gray Jr. did nothing to stop the alleged abuse, Ogle said. The state is prepared to call a witness who will testify to seeing two of the adoptive Gray children being held in cages.

“He’s directly involved in this,” Ogle told Green.

Lanzon disputed that. He said his client had nothing to do with Jonathan’s death. He called the crimes “repugnant” and suggested they were all perpetrated by Gray’s parents.

Gray Jr. is not charged in Roane County.

The judge said he was struck by the prosecution’s insistence that they had direct proof of Gray Jr.’s role in the Knox County abuse. He said he’d reconsider the bond request if Lanzon wants to raise it later.

“I’m not adjusting the bond today,” he said.

On Friday, Shirley Gray also made her first appearance in the Knox County case. Green informed her of the charges. She’s being represented by the Knox County District Public Defender’s Office.

Michael Gray Sr. was prepared to be in court but didn’t make an appearance.

The family next is due to appear before Green on Feb. 4.[2021]

Gray Sr. and Shirley Gray also face murder and abuse charges in Roane County.

It appears they will be tried first in the Roane County case, lawyers said. Dec. 18 is their next court appearance in Roane County.

In 2016, the Grays moved from their son’s home in Halls to their own home in the Ten Mile community of Roane County. Several children went with them.

Sometime in early 2017, a girl named Sophie died while living with them. Gray Sr. has admitted burying her on the property.

Roane County authorities allege Sophie was murdered and the other children were subjected to prolonged abuse, including being confined and limited to a poor diet that stunted their growth.”

Couple accused in killing, abuse of adoptive children may be tried first in Roane County
[WBIR 11/20/2020]

Update 5:“A Roane County husband and wife accused in the killing of two of their adoptive children face a court hearing Tuesday that could resolve their cases.

Michael, 67, and Shirley Gray, 64, face the threat of the death penalty in one murder case in Roane County Criminal Court.

In Roane County, they’re accused in the killing of adoptive daughter Heather “Sophie” Gray, who was found buried in the yard of their Roane County home in May 2020. Authorities think she died from starvation and abuse at the Gray home in early 2017.

In Knox County, the couple is separately accused in the killing of their adoptive son Jonathan Gray, who was found buried in the yard of a Halls home in May 2020. Authorities think the boy also died from abuse and had been dead since 2015 or 2016.
Ninth Judicial District Attorney General Russell Johnson filed notice in Roane County after the Grays were indicted there that he intended to seek their execution if they were convicted of first-degree murder. There’s been little legal movement in either that case or the Knox County case in recent years.

The Grays are set to appear 9 a.m. Tuesday before Judge Jeff Wicks in Roane County Criminal Court in Kingston. The couple has been in custody since the bones of their adoptive children were found in 2020.

According to Johnson, the defendants agreed to let Wicks handle legal matters from both counties, Roane and Knox. The couple is supposed to be moved from Knox to Roane County for Tuesday’s court appearance.

The Grays had adopted five children by the time Sophie’s remains were found in the Roane County yard, records show. Authorities have suggested they pocketed money they got for the adoptive childrens’ care while neglecting all or most of them.
One of the children told investigators he’d been kept in the lower level of the Halls home for several years until his family moved to Roane County

“He described being confined for lengthy periods of time in a downstairs room as well as a cage. (He) described being forced to defecate in a bucket during this period of confinement and having his food intake severely limited,” a 2020 search warrant affidavit obtained by WBIR states.

Several of his adoptive siblings faced the same treatment, the affidavit states.
In the Grays’ Roane County home, some of the children were confined in an unfinished basement, records state.

Jonathan and Sophie were subjected to repeated abuse and harsh living conditions, authorities allege. Jonathan fell sick in the Halls home, after which he simply “disappeared,” the affidavit states.

The family is believed first to have lived in a home on Cedarbreeze Road in the Halls area with the Grays’ natural son, Michael Anthony Gray Jr. The son owned the home, records show.

While they lived there, Jonathan died. He was buried in the Halls yard, but no one said anything about it for years.

The Grays then moved in 2016 to the Ten Mile community of Roane County with the four surviving adoptive children. Sophie died months later.

On May 22, 2020, a neighbor found one of the adoptive children, age 11, wandering in the area. That triggered a police investigation during which Michael Gray Sr. admitted they’d find Sophie’s remains on his Roane County property.

Investigators dug up the girl’s remains, and as the investigation continued police were led to check out the Halls home owned by Gray Jr. On May 24, 2020, they found what proved to be Jonathan’s skeletal remains.

Michael Gray Jr., 43, owned the Cedarbreeze house for about 11 years, records show. After Jonathan’s remains were found in the yard, he was indicted with several counts in Knox County, including felony murder. Ownership of the home also changed hands.
His case is separate from that of his parents. He’s not charged in Roane County.
Gray Jr. faces a court hearing Friday in Knox County Criminal Court. He’s not in custody, records show.”

Roane County couple accused in children’s deaths face key court hearing Tuesday
[WBIR 5/14/24 by John North, Vinay Simlot]