41-year-old Liza Lindsay of Richmond is facing criminal neglect charges related to her unclean home and the way she treats her 19-year-old daughter, identified as 19-year-old Caleigh Lindsay. On top of the negligence charges, she and her boyfriend Daryl Grubbs are accused of mistreating Lindsay's two boys, who are 13 and 15, who lived in the same house.An affidavit states that Lindsay's daughter was among the "unresponsive female" who was reported to authorities on July 24 at the family's residence at 1313 South 10th Street. The document detailing the charges include the eyewitness account of a detective from the Richmond Police Department.
"When I entered the front door to the residence, I smelled a strong odor of what I can only describe as a combination of cat urine/feces and garbage," the police report said. A little landing was located inside the entrance door. From the landing, one may descend a flight of steps to a lower level and ascend a flight of stairs to a higher level. From the subterranean level, I began filming.
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Police and investigators reportedly had to wade through "about a foot of rubbish and other things" while dodging "fly strips hanging from the ceiling covered with insects," according to the affidavit. The victim's room featured a portrait of "Minnie Mouse" on the door. That she was "nonverbal, severely autistic, epileptic, wheelchair-bound, has microcephalic disease, mitochondrial disease, and Pit-Hopkins syndrome" was stated in the affidavit.
The detective said that upon opening the door, he discovered a dresser among a substantial amount of rubbish.
"According to the detective, there were black spots on the walls and ceiling" that appeared like "black mold," and he distinctly remembers a little television resting on a dresser with a huge piece of Plexiglas in front of it.
"I was wearing a mask on my face, but I still found it hard to breathe due to the strong smell of what I can only describe as garbage, feces, and decomposition," the law enforcement official said. Dirty diapers lay on the floor among the refuse. A confined space, like a stall, was present in the room. All four corners of the enclosed space were cushioned to a height of around four feet. Within the stall, you could see gaps in the walls. The door of the stall was ajar. When I walked inside the room, the door to the restroom was ajar.
Authorities discovered Lindsay's daughter inside the stall, undressed "except for a partially attached dirty diaper," and the temperature inside the house was 76 degrees, according to the affidavit. A brown dirt coated the walls of the stall, according to the detective's allegations. "There was also a brown substance on the walls of the room."
Ammonia levels inside the house reached "9 ppm," or parts per million, according to the Wayne County Health Department. The state's lowest risk limit is 1.7 ppm, according to the police. According to the affidavit, members of the Indiana Department of Child Services (DCS) also arrived at the scene and consequently removed Lindsay's two surviving children into their custody after determining that the circumstances inside the apartment demonstrated symptoms of neglect.
"Liza said her residence looked the way it did because she has been depressed," the detective continues. Liza mentioned that she was prescribed medicine for her depression, however her physicians discontinued her prescription in January of 2025. "My depression has worsened since," Liza added.
Nevertheless, as stated in the affidavit, investigators discovered that Lindsay's physicians had not discontinued the medicine she had been prescribed for her depression when they reviewed her medical records online. The mother, Lindsay, allegedly told the authorities that her daughter suffered from seizures and would often bang her head on objects while inconsolable. According to her account to the police, the last time she saw the adolescent was the evening of July 23 at about 10:45 p.m.
"Liza said her daughter had a seizure at that time that lasted approximately 1 minute," the document indicates. At around 11:15 p.m., Liza stated that she waited for her daughter to emerge from the seizure before putting her in the recovery position, with her feet facing east and her head facing west. After saying goodbye to her two younger children, Liza retired to her basement bedroom. The Chinese dramas that Liza watched on her phone kept her up until after midnight, according to her.
A man named Grubbs, who "acted like the children's stepfather," was supposedly the one who discovered the victim when he was at home. She and the other kids in the house claim he ignored their needs. An acquaintance of Lindsay's went to the authorities and said that she and Grubbs were both aggressive with the kids.
What transpired, according to the police
When Darryl Grubbs, who was seeing Liza Lindsay, went to give Caleigh medication first thing in the morning, he allegedly discovered her body. The children's stepfather, Grubbs told the police, stayed with Liza Lindsay on occasion. On the other hand, the kids said he was constantly around.
According to Grubbs, he and Liza Lindsay waited for Liza to settle down for around fifteen to twenty minutes before calling 911 to report Caleigh Lindsay's death.
According to Liza Lindsay's statement to the police, her daughter had health issues from birth and has lived with a disability. Microcephalic illness, mitochondrial disease, and Pitt-Hopkins syndrome contributed to her nonverbality, autism, epilepsy, and wheelchair dependence. Reportedly, she continued to rely on a feeding tube until she was ten years old.
Caleigh Lindsay frequently experienced seizures as a result of her disease. Caleigh Lindsay's head injuries sustained during her seizure, according to Liza Lindsay, who explained the holes in the walls of the "stall" to the police.
At around 10:45 p.m. on July 23, Liza Lindsay stated that she last saw her daughter alive. After changing her diaper, she administered her medicine and made sure she drank enough of water. According to Liza Lindsay, Caleigh Lindsay had a brief seizure at that moment. At around 11:15 p.m., Liza Lindsay said she placed her daughter on her side, waited for the seizure to stop, and then went to bed.
In the morning, Grubbs discovered the body of the 19-year-old. Liza Lindsay informed the police that she saw Caleigh laying on her back with her feet curled up, as if she were having a seizure, according to court documents.
According to the results of the autopsy, Caleigh Lindsay likely had a seizure as a result of a Pitt-Hopkins syndrome problem.
Background
Liza Lindsay explained the house's condition to the police by saying it was a result of her despair. According to her statement to the police, her depression intensified when her physicians stopped prescribing her medicine in January.
The cops were unable to confirm that she had been taken off her medicine after reviewing her medical history.
As part of their inquiry into Caleigh Lindsay's demise, an individual claiming to know Liza Lindsay said that they hadn't been to her house in quite some time. Additionally, the acquaintance mentioned that she had no contact with Caleigh Lindsay for the past six months. Grubbs may have been aggressive with Liza Lindsay and her children, according to the acquaintance who informed the police.
The police also heard from a relative of Liza Lindsay's who said they hadn't visited her house in a long time. The other children of Liza Lindsay seemed to be eating and washing appropriately, according to a relative's testimony in court.
The same relative who reported the teenager missing claimed she hadn't seen the 19-year-old in over a year. According to the relative, Liza Lindsay's children's clothing frequently had the scent of cat pee on it.
Where do we go from here?
Both Grubbs and Liza Lindsay are facing two preliminary counts of dependent neglect. They are facing Level 6 Felonies in the preliminary accusations.
Grubbs and Lindsay are each facing two counts of felony dependent neglect. Both were detained in Wayne County, and Lindsay was reportedly released on Friday, according to documents. As of Monday, Grubbs remained in prison.