The Way They Could Tell She Had Been Dead for DAYS is Horrific- The Story of Willow Dunn

The Way They Could Tell She Had Been Dead for DAYS is Horrific – The Story of Willow Dunn

When paramedics were called to the home that day, they didn’t know what to expect. They had been told that a child had suddenly died, but when they arrived at the home, what they found was much worse than anyone could have ever imagined.

Welcome, or welcome back! I’m Cassie, and this is A Wicked World. Thanks for joining me, I hope everyone’s having a great day today.

A Quick Word on Today’s Sponsor

Before we get into today’s video, I just quickly wanted to tell you about an awesome sale that one of my favorite places to buy jewelry is having. Ana Luisa is in the middle of having their big November sale right now, which means you can get up to 30% off of all their beautiful and already affordable jewelry. Just use my link in the description box below because, as you all know, the holidays are going to be here like pretty much tomorrow morning—or so it feels.

Ana Luisa jewelry is perfect for your mom, sister, friend, anyone on your list who wears jewelry, really. You can’t go wrong with Ana Luisa. Their pieces are high quality, and honestly, they look more expensive than they really are. And to add in 30% off of their already great deals? Well, who doesn’t love sales! I’m going to be buying this piece for my mom for Christmas this year. Now, my mom is picky, and she can be very difficult to buy for, but this year I think I have it covered with Ana Luisa. They’re simple, yet stylish and elegant pieces; there’s nothing to not like about them.

The jewelry I’m wearing today is also Ana Luisa. Now, I love moons—my daughter’s middle name is even Luna—so I just had to have these earrings. I love that one has a moon and then the other has a star, and then this double-layer gold necklace matches them perfectly. So, if you’re ready to start your holiday shopping—or continue like me, I started a long time ago for once—then go down and click on that link in the description box below for beautiful and affordable Ana Luisa jewelry.

Meet Willow Dunn

So, the case I have for you today is about a child who was even more vulnerable than most children are. She therefore needed more attention and care than her siblings did. This little girl was born with Down Syndrome. All she wanted was to love and be loved by her family, but what she got instead was completely let down by everybody around her. This is the story of Willow Dunn.

Willow Dunn was born in Brisbane, Australia, on October 29th, 2015, to her mother, named Naomi Dunn, and her father, Mark Dunn. Willow also had a brother who was three years older than she. She also had three half-siblings who were her mother Naomi’s children from a previous relationship, and she would later have six stepsiblings as well as six nieces and nephews.

Now, Willow was born with Down Syndrome, but despite her challenges, she was still a happy little girl. There’s not much else that I can tell you about her, unfortunately; there’s nothing out there. But what I can tell you from looking at her pictures, I can imagine she was lovable, cuddly, and goofy, and she seemed to love playing with her siblings. I wish there was more that I could tell you about Willow today, but unfortunately, due to the circumstances, there just isn’t any more information about her.

Only a week after Willow was born, her mother Naomi sadly passed away. Naomi had died on November 5th, 2015, due to blood clots that she had sustained during Willow’s birth. After their mother’s death, Willow and her brother were sent to live at an aunt and uncle’s house, and by all accounts, they were happy there. The aunt and uncle were trying to get permanent custody of Willow and her brother, but around a year later, their father Mark would take the kids back to his home, and they would remain in his custody.

The “Best Friend” Moves In

Before she passed, Willow’s mother Naomi had a best friend by the name of Shannon White, whom she had known since the two were kids. They had grown up side-by-side and had been the best of friends for years, so much so that Shannon was actually the maid of honor at Naomi and Mark’s wedding in 2014.

After Willow was born, Shannon had gushed over her pictures when Naomi had posted some on Facebook. Shannon had commented, “My best mate’s baby Willow is such a beautiful soul. I can’t wait to meet her adorable. Naomi, you done such an amazing job with a roller coaster pregnancy. You’re such a great mom and an awesome friend. Love you.” Naomi replied, “Aw, you make me cry. Love you lots.” There was even a post that Shannon had made in 2014 saying, “I still have my bestie from 19 years ago, Naomi.” So, as you can see, the two were very close.

But then, just about 18 months after Naomi had passed in 2017, Shannon had moved away from her home in Adelaide, and she moved into the house of Mark Dunn on Bent Road, Cannon Hill, Brisbane. Mark and Shannon had only a few months prior decided to start a relationship, and when Shannon moved in with Mark, she brought with her her 19-year-old daughter Talia, as well as her 12-year-old son. Shannon had other children as well; she actually had four adult daughters who she had left behind when she moved, and all of these daughters claimed that they haven’t spoken to their mother in years.

Shannon seemed to integrate into the family well. She was enjoying her new life in Brisbane, and she was getting along well with Mark’s children also. Shannon had actually posted many pictures on her Facebook of her with her new family. In this one, Willow looked like she’d found a loving new parent after losing her own mother. Willow’s new mother Shannon would also write alongside a picture of her: “Absolutely beautiful little girl,” and next to a photo of Mark holding Willow, she wrote, “Couple of my favorite people, love of my life.”

The family seemed happy because Mark and Shannon’s relationship was also going well. On Facebook, they had posted numerous pictures together and were always tagging each other in loving, gushy memes. Shannon’s family even loved Mark and his family; they would often tell Shannon just how handsome Mark was.

A Horrific Discovery

But then, on May 25th, 2020, emergency services were called to the home. This was around 9:20 in the morning. They had been told that a 4-year-old girl had suddenly died, but they really didn’t know what to expect other than that. What they found when they got there was worse than anyone could have ever imagined.

In the back bedroom of the home that the family rented was Willow lying in her crib, and she was deceased. She had been dead for some time now. The reason the first responders knew this immediately was because it looked like rats had started to eat away at little Willow’s face. Her body was severely malnourished, and she had pressure sores—some of them so bad that they went all the way to the bone, to the point where the bone was showing. It was apparent that Willow had been left to lay there for some time now.

Mark Dunn allegedly asked the paramedics when they arrived at his home, “I’m in trouble, aren’t I?” Yep, you are, buddy.

An investigator would actually say, “In my experience, ambulance officers and police officers, generally speaking, are fairly resilient people, but I can assure you they were confronted with a scene that will stay with them for many years.”

Mark and Shannon—and really Shannon’s teenage daughter too, because she was 19, she was a legal adult at the time—had all left little Willow there to rot in her crib. She had been helpless and was laying there starving to death. It had been weeks, or maybe even months, that she had suffered like that to get pressure sores that big that they went down to the bone.

Arrests and Excuses

Mark was placed under arrest the very same day that Willow’s body had been discovered, and he was charged with murder. Luckily, Queensland had actually just added a new definition of murder, and it now included “reckless indifference to human life,” which is what Mark ended up being charged with.

Mark told authorities that he had discovered that Willow died on Saturday, May 23rd, but he hadn’t decided to call first responders until Monday, May 25th. For what reason? No idea, he hasn’t said yet.

And even though Mark had been arrested, Willow’s stepmother and stepsister remained free. As far as the public was being informed, there was no reason to believe that either one of them was involved with Willow’s death. But they lived there. And if you live there, there’s no way that you don’t know that there’s a child literally starving and rotting away in the room next door.

But don’t worry, a few days later Shannon was arrested, and she was also charged with murder. Once she was arrested, Shannon had no problem telling police that she didn’t need to take care of Willow because she wasn’t her responsibility. Why? Well, because she wasn’t her biological daughter, of course. This was her best friend’s daughter. Her best friend she shacked up with her husband after she died, and then killed her little girl. The little girl that her best friend Naomi had died bringing into this world.

One of the many problems with Shannon’s statement about not having to care for Willow since she wasn’t her biological child was that Willow’s 7-year-old brother seemed well cared for. There appeared to be no signs of mistreatment towards him whatsoever. A friend of the family would say that Shannon, of course, absolutely doted on her own children. So she was only a monster towards a sweet little girl with Down Syndrome who had lost her own mother.

Shannon also told police that her 19-year-old daughter Talia had taken it upon herself at one point to care for Willow. She had assisted with her bathing, feeding, and changing diapers, but for unknown reasons, she too stopped caring for the little girl at some point and left her there to fend for herself.

It was also discovered that Willow was not registered for her Down Syndrome with the NDIS, or the National Disability Insurance Scheme. This helps connect disabled people in Australia to the necessary resources as well as needed funding for medical costs. So that being said, it’s likely that Willow was not receiving the services that she needed. Between that and her stepmother not wanting to take care of her, she was being severely neglected.

When Mark spoke with police, he said that this had happened because he wasn’t able to handle his daughter’s special needs, and he had become severely depressed after his wife’s death. Yeah, so he was depressed enough that he couldn’t take care of his daughter who needed him, but he’s not too depressed to hook up with his wife’s best friend? Hm. Hm. Oh, and have a new baby with her too.

A New Priority

Because it seems what happened is that Mark and Shannon had recently welcomed a baby boy of their own into the world on August 30th, 2018. Their baby boy was happy and healthy and clearly adored by both of his parents. Shannon had also posted numerous pictures of her and her new baby to Facebook, including a recent video of him happily playing with his toys on the floor—while Willow was probably laying in her crib in the other room.

Four-year-old Willow had been left to starve and essentially rot away while her father and new stepmother doted on their new baby. Mark had also banned his wife’s other children from seeing Willow. He had blocked their phone numbers as well as their Facebook profiles.

When police had been at the family’s home the day that Willow was discovered, they also noticed that there were toys—including a train set, stuffed animals, a pink princess castle, among others—left out for trash. It’s likely that these were Willow’s toys being thrown out. Though honestly, I’m surprised they didn’t do it sooner the way they were treating her.

The Autopsy Findings

When Willow’s autopsy was done, it was discovered that she had died of not only severe malnourishment but also of infected pressure sores. She had been left to lay there for so long, helpless and in pain, that she had virtually no muscular tissue around her mouth, no food in her stomach, and she was severely dehydrated.

Even though the pressure sores were throughout Willow’s body, the majority of them were found on her back. The large amount there suggests that she was unable to move at all. She also had deep sores all the way down to her pelvic bone, and this was likely caused by the diaper rubbing on it over and over as she was unable to move.

A doctor who had examined Willow’s body would say that if a child was able to move even a little bit and change their position, then this will immediately improve the circulation or blood flow through this area and slow down or reverse those sores. Willow’s body also showed signs of pancreatitis, and this would have been caused by her poor nutrition and severe dehydration.

It was discovered that the last time that Willow had seen a doctor was in 2018, and at that time she seemed normal, lively, and healthy. At the time she went to the doctors, her height was in the 25th percentile. At the time of her death, she was only in the 5th percentile. So Willow had suddenly stopped growing, and according to the doctor, this drastic kind of drop would have taken at least 8 months to occur.

Legal Proceedings

Both Mark Dunn and Shannon White were hit with further charges on July 20th, 2022. They were each charged with an additional count of child cruelty. Shannon was also charged with possessing dangerous drugs, though it’s unclear what kind of drugs or what the circumstance was surrounding that charge.

Magistrate Mark Nolan committed Mark and Shannon to stand trial in the Supreme Court at a date that is yet to be decided. If convicted of murder, they will both face mandatory life sentences with a minimum of 20 years in prison.

Neighbors of the family were shocked to hear about Willow’s death. They went to the home to lay down flowers for the little girl, and they said that they didn’t even know a little girl had lived there. The family had moved in around a year prior.

It was announced that an independent investigation into Willow’s death was to be conducted by the Queensland Family and Child Commission. The investigation is to look at where the system failed, and it’s been said that the Department of Child Safety had been notified about Willow on more than one occasion. But Child Safety Minister Di Farmer has refused to confirm if the family was known to them or not. If this was the case, then how was Willow allowed to fall into such poor condition without ever being checked on?

Then, in June of 2022, Shannon White decided to apply for bail at the Brisbane Supreme Court. She argued that the case for reckless murder was weak and that her case wouldn’t be held for quite some time. Shannon’s barrister (or what we would call a criminal lawyer here in the United States) also told the judge that there was a weak case of reckless murder against Shannon, but she did agree that there was probably a strong enough case for manslaughter. She said that her client might only receive a six-year jail sentence if she’s convicted of manslaughter, and this significantly large case was expected to be as much as a year away, and her client had already spent two years in jail.

Justice David Boddice disagreed that the case against Shannon was weak, and he refused her application. Now, in regards to the barrister’s other concern of how long Shannon had been in jail and how she didn’t want her to over-serve her time, the judge said that even if she was convicted of the lesser charge of manslaughter, he was confident that she would be serving more than six years’ worth of jail time. The now 45-year-old Shannon White was seen in the courtroom wiping away tears.

A Community Mourns

A few of Willow’s older brothers and sisters mourned her death. Naomi Dunn’s adult son spoke of his half-sister on Facebook in the days after her death, saying: “Rest in peace, Willow. It’s so heartbreaking that things have turned out this way, but you will forever be in our hearts. Fly high with mum.”

In June 2020, Willow Dunn was remembered in a public memorial held by strangers. The memorial was organized in Cannon Hill Park by Brisbane’s Down Syndrome Community. Willow’s family had given the event their blessing, but they chose not to attend. The organizer of the event said, “None of us know Willow, and if we did, who knows, things might have been different. But just to see love and support from everyone for a child nobody knew, but she’s got a big place in our hearts.”

Many attending the memorial had children of their own with Down Syndrome. One mother in particular, whose son had Down Syndrome, said, “You think about how pure and innocent all children are, but children with Down Syndrome give nothing but love.”

The Down Syndrome Community also threw its support behind an online vigil held for Willow. Organizers asked the community to light a candle in Willow’s memory and post tributes online using the hashtag #HerNameIsWillow.

Mark Dunn and Shannon White have yet to go to trial and are both still being held in jail.

Outro

Well, thank you for listening to all of Willow’s story today. I’ll keep my eye out for updates on this one once it goes to court. This is horrific, and I really wonder why the 19-year-old daughter who was said to be living in the home didn’t do anything or tell anyone, especially considering she had been the one to help take care of Willow for a while. And how can someone go from a loving stepmother to neglecting their new stepdaughter completely? The one whom they had just taken all these loving pictures with and posted them publicly on their social media. And it was her best friend’s daughter. It makes no sense to me, and it is just so sad that this little girl who was so full of love had to go through such tremendous amounts of pain.