FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WPTA/Gray News) - A woman in Indiana is accused of claiming that her daughter was terminally ill for financial gain and for a chance to win a Make-A-Wish trip to Disney World.
Authorities said 41-year-old Katherine Jackson took her 6-year-old daughter to a hospital in 2022, claiming the child had an irregular heartbeat and ongoing seizures.
Because of concerns about medical child abuse, staff ran tests on the child that revealed there were no medications in her system, indicating that she was not taking her prescribed seizure medicine.
After the tests, a doctor requested the child be transported for evaluation.
The doctor reviewed the child’s medical records and also spoke to medical providers, teams, pharmacies, and home nursing agencies involved in the girl’s care.
Multiple prescriptions for the child were found to not be filled, including medications for seizures, another for a lung disorder, and various antibiotics.
After her review, the doctor determined there was “extensive maternal falsification and likely induction consistent with medical child abuse.”
She also found that the child suffered pain from blood draws, psychological distress from evaluations, and unnecessary radiation exposure.
Another doctor who was involved with the child’s medical care said she does suffer from a genetic mutation called Pilarowski-Bjornsson Syndrome, for which there is no cure, but that it is not terminal.
When asked about what her mother would say about her being sick, the young girl told authorities, “Probably that I’m gonna go up to Heaven.”
She also described not being allowed to go to school even though she wanted to go.
The girl and her sister have not been in their mother’s care since 2022.
Investigators also found that Jackson collected $1,563.71 from a GoFundMe page that claimed her daughter had Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome and suffered 80 to 90 seizures a day.
The fundraiser said the girl had six months to a year left to live and that her wish was to go to Walt Disney World and meet Princess Elsa with her mom and little sister.
In this case, Jackson has been charged with two counts of neglect of a dependent and one count of fraud.
More than 10 years ago, Jackson - then going by the name Katherine Conapinski - misrepresented an organization collecting money for a boy with cancer, even collecting cash at the child’s funeral.
Jackson was charged with eight counts of theft, one count of check fraud and one count of check deception.
She pleaded guilty in the case and was sentenced to five years probation and one year of house arrest, as well as being ordered to work 10 hours each month for five years at the Warrick County Landfill. Jackson was also required to pay up to $20,000 in restitution.
However, court records show she violated her probation and was sentenced to four years in prison.
Authorities said 41-year-old Katherine Jackson took her 6-year-old daughter to a hospital in 2022, claiming the child had an irregular heartbeat and ongoing seizures.
Because of concerns about medical child abuse, staff ran tests on the child that revealed there were no medications in her system, indicating that she was not taking her prescribed seizure medicine.
After the tests, a doctor requested the child be transported for evaluation.
The doctor reviewed the child’s medical records and also spoke to medical providers, teams, pharmacies, and home nursing agencies involved in the girl’s care.
Multiple prescriptions for the child were found to not be filled, including medications for seizures, another for a lung disorder, and various antibiotics.
After her review, the doctor determined there was “extensive maternal falsification and likely induction consistent with medical child abuse.”
She also found that the child suffered pain from blood draws, psychological distress from evaluations, and unnecessary radiation exposure.
Another doctor who was involved with the child’s medical care said she does suffer from a genetic mutation called Pilarowski-Bjornsson Syndrome, for which there is no cure, but that it is not terminal.
When asked about what her mother would say about her being sick, the young girl told authorities, “Probably that I’m gonna go up to Heaven.”
She also described not being allowed to go to school even though she wanted to go.
The girl and her sister have not been in their mother’s care since 2022.
Investigators also found that Jackson collected $1,563.71 from a GoFundMe page that claimed her daughter had Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome and suffered 80 to 90 seizures a day.
The fundraiser said the girl had six months to a year left to live and that her wish was to go to Walt Disney World and meet Princess Elsa with her mom and little sister.
In this case, Jackson has been charged with two counts of neglect of a dependent and one count of fraud.
More than 10 years ago, Jackson - then going by the name Katherine Conapinski - misrepresented an organization collecting money for a boy with cancer, even collecting cash at the child’s funeral.
Jackson was charged with eight counts of theft, one count of check fraud and one count of check deception.
She pleaded guilty in the case and was sentenced to five years probation and one year of house arrest, as well as being ordered to work 10 hours each month for five years at the Warrick County Landfill. Jackson was also required to pay up to $20,000 in restitution.
However, court records show she violated her probation and was sentenced to four years in prison.
