A mother and her two transgender partners have been indicted on multiple charges, including aggravated murder, in the death of her 7-year-old son, William Michael Evans-Ellis. The child was found dead on August 6 in a Cincinnati apartment, with the Hamilton County Coroner's office determining the cause of death to be blunt force trauma to the head. He also sustained numerous other injuries, including bruises across his body, a broken bone, and burns, and officials believe he may have been sexually assaulted.
Prosecutor Connie Pillich described the case as "atrocious acts" and stated that the suspects "failed miserably as parents." Kaitlin Evans, 38, and her partners, Nessa Keaney, 23, and Kirby Rankin, 33, face 13 counts each, including aggravated murder, murder, kidnapping, felonious assault, endangering children, and conspiracy. Rankin's birth name is Nathan Rankin, and Keaney's birth name is Adamhnan Judaydon Caoilte Lugh Keaney, according to court records. Both Keaney and Rankin are biological males, while Evans is the boy's biological mother.
Authorities believe the child had been dead for at least a day before being discovered duct-taped inside a closet. Investigators also noted signs of "water torture" and extensive bruising. The indictment was announced on Thursday, with Pillich vowing to seek the maximum penalty, potentially life in prison without parole, for the accused. Each suspect is being held on $1.1 million bond.
An attorney for Kaitlin Evans has stated that his client did not cause the death of her son, attributing it to one of the other suspects, though not explicitly naming either Keaney or Rankin. The attorney also argued that Evans failed to save her son and requested a $250,000 bond.
It was also revealed that the child's father, Tara Ellis, is transgender. Tara Ellis, who is not accused of any wrongdoing, had been in an open relationship with Evans and her partners before the child's death. Tara Ellis moved out of the residence prior to the boy's death and last saw her son in December 2025, nine months before he died. She expressed distress in court, stating, "Willie was my life. I trusted you to care for him. They kept him from me for the past nine months over lies."