Sylvia Likens was killed in the 60s of the last century, but talk about this does not subside to this day. The murder of an American girl is considered one of the most atrocious crimes in the world. She was 16 years old. Sylvia's story formed the basis of the Hollywood film "The Neighbor".
Who is Sylvia Likens
Sylvia Likens was born in 1949 in a family of organizers of carnivals. Her parents' work was of a traveling nature, in connection with which they were often absent from home. It was difficult to call the girl's family prosperous: the Likens did not live well, they constantly quarreled, and then they diverged, then they converged.
Sylvia Likens' difficult childhood
The family had 5 children. Besides Sylvia, there are two more boys and two girls. One of the younger sisters contracted polio in infancy, which is why she could not move on her own. She was mostly taken care of by Sylvia. The family constantly wandered from one place to another. At the same time, the children stayed with some acquaintances, then with others.
When Sylvia was 16 years old, the family moved to Indianapolis. Soon the mother of the girl thundered into prison for theft. Due to the traveling nature of his work, the father decided to give his two youngest daughters to the care of Gertrude Banishevsky, who lived next door. Sylvia and her sisters were friends with her daughter, Paula, at that time. Besides her, Gertrude had six more children. The Baniszewski family also lived in poverty. Gertrude was a single mother, did not work, her only income was payments from the state for children. Sylvia's father paid Baniszewski $ 20 a week to look after his daughters.
Life in the Baniszewski family
The first week in the neighborhood family went well for Sylvia and her sisters. Together with Banishevsky, they went to church services, and in the evenings whiled away the time watching TV. However, after Sylvia's father did not make the payment on time for looking after his children, Gertrude began to take evil on them. Problems in her personal life left an imprint on the psyche of a woman. She often fell into prolonged depression.
At first, Gertrude began to blame the girls for theft. For this she beat them with a belt. Subsequently, Banishevsky began to accuse Sylvia of promiscuity. Once she inspired the girl that she was pregnant. And Sylvia really believed it. Baniszewski turned the girl's life into hell by asking the neighborhood boys to beat her up. Sylvia talked about the bullying to her older sister, who once came to visit the girls. However, she did not believe her words.
Baniszewski's neighbors knew very well about the constant beatings of the girls, but did not report anywhere. Further, the situation only worsened. Gertrude began to force Sylvia's younger sister to beat her. She herself began to extinguish cigarette bulls on her skin, pouring hot water over her. Sylvia soon developed kidney problems. She was not even allowed to leave the house for classes. The girl began urinating on the bed, which greatly infuriated Banishevsky. She let Sylvia down to the basement, forbade her to leave it and go to the toilet. To survive, Sylvia ate her own faeces.
A few days before her death, the phrase "I am a prostitute and I am proud of it" was burned on the girl's stomach with a needle. It was also established that Sylvia was raped with a bottle.
Death of Sylvia Likens
Shortly before her death, the girl tried to escape, but she was caught and tied up. She died on October 26, 1965. The cause of death was cerebral hemorrhage, malnutrition and shock. Baniszewski called the police and provided them with a letter written by Sylvia under her pressure. It talked about intimate relationships with boys for money, who did burns and other injuries on the body. However, during the interrogation, Sylvia's sister told the police: "Take me out of here, and I will tell the real truth."
Banishevsky's lawyer was able to commute the sentence, under the pretext of her dementia. As a result, the death penalty was replaced by life imprisonment. Gertrude's children were also convicted.
