Rose Hill, KS – A Kansas woman has been sentenced to more than 17 years in prison after admitting to placing her 6-year-old adopted daughter in a box where she suffocated to death, then burying her in the family’s backyard — where her body remained hidden for nearly four years before being discovered.
Crystina Elizabeth Schroer, 50, was sentenced on Monday after pleading no contest to second-degree murder, child abuse, making false information, and welfare fraud in the death of her daughter, Kennedy Schroer. She was originally charged with first-degree murder.
Chilling Discovery and Start of the Investigation
The investigation began in September 2024 after Rose Hill police responded to the Schroer home following a suicide attempt by Crystina. During the response, officers said the woman made a startling admission, stating that “her life was over and that no one was going to look at her the same.”
Crystina confessed that one night in late 2020, her children were fighting, and when she went to separate them, she noticed Kennedy was missing. She found the child inside a box covered with blankets and a crib, unresponsive and without a pulse. Instead of reporting the death, she admitted to driving around with the girl’s body before burying her in a shallow, 23-inch grave in their backyard.
Authorities later discovered Kennedy’s remains wrapped in a trash bag during a forensic dig behind the family’s home on North Meeker Court. DNA tests confirmed the remains belonged to Kennedy, who was born Natalie Garcia on July 14, 2014, before being adopted by the Schroers in 2018.
Horrific Details of Abuse Revealed
A 44-page affidavit provided haunting details of what led to the girl’s death. According to one of the Schroers’ other children, Crystina would force the kids to sleep inside a storage box if they moved at night. The sibling recalled that on the night of Kennedy’s death, the mother made her listen for any sounds coming from the box.
When Kennedy made a noise, Crystina allegedly returned to the room and asked, “Is she still making noises?” She then covered the box with blankets and a crib, effectively trapping Kennedy inside. Hours later, when the mother opened the box, Kennedy was blue and unresponsive. The sister said she never saw her again.
Crystina later told her husband and relatives that state officials had taken Kennedy back into foster care due to behavioral problems, attempting to hide the truth for years.
The Four-Year Cover-Up and Welfare Fraud
Investigators believe Kennedy was suffocated in late 2020, yet the family continued to collect approximately $23,000 in Medicaid payments on her behalf even after her death. The deception unraveled in 2024 after Crystina’s suicide attempt prompted police to investigate the family home.
During their search, officers had to cut through dense vegetation before cadaver dogs alerted them to several areas of interest. After hours of excavation, detectives found the child’s remains in a two-foot-deep makeshift grave.
Authorities say the case required more than 2,000 investigative hours, involving local police, the FBI, the IRS, and Wichita’s Exploited and Missing Children’s Unit.
“She was a beautiful child, with an infectious smile,” police said in a statement, describing Kennedy’s life before her tragic death.
Father Also Facing Charges
Crystina’s husband, Joseph Schroer, is scheduled to be sentenced on December 3 on child endangerment charges related to the case. The couple had three biological children and two adopted children, all of whom have since been placed under state custody following Kennedy’s discovery.
Community Reaction and Legal Outcome
The case has deeply shaken the small town of Rose Hill, a community of about 4,000 residents southeast of Wichita. The revelation that Kennedy’s body remained buried on the family’s property for years has prompted outrage and calls for stronger oversight of adoptive family welfare programs.
Crystina’s 17-year sentence marks the end of a devastating case that exposed years of abuse and concealment. Investigators hope it serves as a warning to improve child welfare monitoring and foster care accountability across the state.
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