Parents charged with murder, neglect in death of 17-year-old child

WASHINGTON - Two parents who were arrested and charged in connection with neglect and murder following the death of their 17-year-old child last year appeared in court Thursday. 

Several neighbors described seeing a large police presence in their Montgomery Village neighborhood Wednesday morning. Montgomery County Police confirmed Dominique Moore, 45, and 40-year-old Cynthia Moore were arrested on a warrant earlier that day and are now charged with Second Degree Murder and six counts of Neglect of a Minor.

Police found deplorable conditions inside the home and also removed six other children, placing those children in foster care.

Dominique Moore, 45, and Cynthia Moore, 40

It was back on May 10, 2022 when Montgomery County Police and Fire responded to the 9400 block of Quill Place for a teen having difficulty breathing. The unnamed 17-year-old collapsed. Court documents say the victim’s mother told first responders her daughter had Multiple Sclerosis, diabetes, and was dealing with long-term effects from COVID, but also hadn’t seen a doctor in two years.

40-year-old Cynthia Moore’s bond hearing was postponed to tomorrow. Dominique Moore was held without bond today. Another hearing is scheduled in June. The prosecutor told the judge both parents basically watched the victim slowly die for months. The prosecutor described police and first responders finding the unresponsive teen nearly a year ago, in a make-shift bed located in the living room. At that point, it was said the teen could no longer walk. The prosecutor said the whole family had to witness this at the same time and described the victim as also having an abscess on their back.

A detective described the teen as appearing emaciated. Court documents described animal feces throughout the home, little lighting and non-function toilets. Officials also described the home as appearing to have not nearly enough beds for all the family members.

Only on FOX 5, an older sibling of the victim shared some about their lost loved-one but asked not to be identified.

 That sibling said the 17-year-old victim was transgender male whose name is Morgan. However, not all family members respected this. 

 The sibling wept, while telling FOX 5, "I woke up and he was dead and I never got to say goodbye to him. We were supposed to take him to Japan and take him to see things he liked – and he never went anywhere besides movie theaters or the playground and that’s upsetting because he never got to live a life or work or have friends or do anything. He just lived his life online, and then he died."

 "I just want my brother to be remembered as the artist and the person he was. He was as good person," the sibling added, "and I want people who are transphobic and not accepting of their children to accept their kids for who they are and love them no matter what."

 Asked how anyone could have helped, the sibling said, "Listen … and I wish the people saw, acknowledged that there’s something wrong with the way the house was and the way everything was going on. No one left the house."

A few neighbors declined to interview on camera. 

One described off-camera the heartbreak she felt watching Child Protective Services separate the children from the adults and remove them from the home last year. However, that neighbor still didn’t know the reason why that was happening.

 Most neighbors said the family kept to themselves. Some knew of multiple children in the home. Some only knew there was a couple there – and knew the father only by his first name, saying "hi" and "bye" in passing.

Authorities say there were a total of ten total adult and minor children living in the same home with their parents. The six minor children, ages five to 15 years old, were removed after their sibling's death and placed in foster care.

According to a grandmother, it was believed the children would only communicate with people outside their immediate family when they were using an X-BOX game console, a detective also noted in charging documents.  

Officials say the medical examiner report, deeming the teen’s death a homicide, was not formalized until mid-last month. While the victim’s height was not given, the ME report described the victim as weighing 79lbs with clothes on. The ME also said the teen died of complications from a neurological disorder.

Officials do not believe this would have happened had the teen been properly cared for. Montgomery County’s Department of Health and Human Services would not comment on CPS’ involvement or details in this investigation.

The children were believed to have been home-schooled, although a detective noted in court documents there was evidence of developmental delays. Police said none of the six children interviewed were able to give an account of what their school day is like.

 MCPS Spokesperson Jessica Baxter provided FOX 5 with the following:

Under state law, each child who resides in Maryland and is 5 years old or older and under 18 shall attend a public school regularly during the entire school year. The law includes several exceptions, however, two of which apply to home instruction.  First, a child is exempt from the law if he or she "is receiving regular, thorough instruction during the school year in the studies usually taught in the public schools to children of the same age." Maryland recognizes home instruction as a means for children to receive regular, thorough instruction. Second, a child is exempt from the law if he or she "has completed" a home instruction program as determined by the parent or guardian and verified by the local school system or supervising entity. It should be noted that, upon application of a child for admission to a public school from a home instruction program, the local superintendent determines by an evaluation the placement of the child, regardless of the grade the child seeks to enter and the age at which the program began. The home instruction regulations are found in the Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR) 13A.10.01. The purpose of these regulations is to establish a procedure to be used by the superintendent of each local school system to determine if a child participating in a home instruction program is receiving regular, thorough instruction during the school year in the studies usually taught in the public schools to children of the same age.  Once a home instruction program has begun, the parent or guardian must annually verify its continuation with the local school system or nonpublic school or institution that is supervising the program. A parent or guardian who chooses to provide a home instruction program for his or her child is responsible for selecting the curriculum and/or instructional materials to be used. The home instruction regulation outlines certain aspects of the program that must be present, but also reserves for the parent or guardian a certain amount of flexibility to create a program that meets the needs of the child. The home instruction program is not required to be aligned with Maryland’s College- and Career-Ready Standards. A parent or guardian who chooses to provide a home instruction program for his or her child must submit to portfolio reviews by the local school system. The reviewer may ask to see materials that demonstrate the parent or guardian is providing regular, thorough instruction during the school year in the required subject areas.  Although the parent or guardian must agree to permit a representative of the local school system to review the portfolio and discuss the instructional program, the local school system can only conduct its reviews at a time and place mutually agreeable to both parties. 

FOX 5 asked specific questions involving the children in the Montgomery Village case – how many times this family was approved for home instruction? When did they first apply and when was the first review done? Were they approved for all six minors removed and the 17-year-old who died? Was the review process paused in the pandemic? Did the mother not agree to these reviews at any time What happened if so? When was the last review done?

 MCPS responded that the school system "cannot disclose specific information as it relates directly to student privacy."