[Music] 911 where's your emergency yes we have an emergency uh he's he's not breathing at all okay can you start CPR yeah my my wife's trying keep going how who are we talking about how old a patient uh he's 3 months okay okay B Fountain Ohio a small town nestled in the midwest where families live quiet lives mostly Untouched by the chaos of the outside world or so it seems however in this seemingly peaceful place a tragedy unfolded in a 13-month period between 2014 and 2015 that would shock the town and the entire nation Britney Pilkington a mother of four stood accused of an unimaginable crime but what drove her to commit such atrocities and how did this family's darkest Secrets go unnoticed for so long let's Dive In the Pilkington seemed like a typical American family trying to navigate the challenges of life in the small town of belfountain Ohio Joseph and his wife Britney shared a unit in the Redbud Hill apartments with their four children Nile Gavin and Noah and their eldest child a daughter the couple generally kept to themselves and they seem to be a close-knit unit striving to provide a stable environment for their little ones but in July of 2014 the Pilkington seemingly ordinary life took a devastating turn Joseph Pilkington returned home from work one evening expecting the usual chaos of a household filled with young children the playful chatter of his eldest daughter the sounds of his wife tending to their little ones and the gentle coups of their three-month-old son Nile instead he was met with an eerie silence that immediately put him on edge walking through the door Joseph called out but no one answered making his way to the crib his heart sank Nile their youngest lay completely still his tiny chest no longer rising and falling and I said um now buddy come on wake up so you can't sleep like that I said and I went to move him and he was cold 911 where's your emergency yes we have an emergency our little infant uh he's he not breathing at all okay can you start CPR yeah my my wife's trying keep going how who are we talking about how old a patient uh he's three months okay okay what what happened prior to this I don't know I just got home I went to check my son and he's cold he's cold to the touch cold to the touch yeah okay is she doing CPR is someone doing CPR yes my wife is but I mean 720 what is your name sir my name is JT what is it Joseph kilington Pilkington kington okay I see that okay I got that my son name is n okay I have help on the way sir but I want to stay on the phone with you is anything happening with the CPR no nothing's happening is she doing the CPR correctly yes she's still doing it lips are white his lips are white yes okay we'll do two breaths and 30 compressions okay two breaths and 30 compression take make sure there's the Airways clear til his head back and you put him in the palm of your hand like on your forearm and push down in the middle of his chest with two fingers okay going honey keep going is he crying or anything no n come on baby keep going sadly by the time paramedics arrived it was too late NY was gone questioned by police Britney claimed that she had accidentally rolled over on Nile while sleeping and suffocated him to death the official cause of death was ruled sudden infant death syndrome a tragic but not uncommon occurrence and one that often leaves families grappling with unanswered questions 9 months later in April 2015 it was Deja Vu for Joseph as he came home to find another son four-year-old Gavin unresponsive Hospital staff worked furiously to revive the boy but he did not pull through this time Britney told police Gavin was breathless when she found him and investigators found no signs of Foul Play Still two young children were gone from the same household in less than a year and authorities had to take action the deaths of NY and Gavin set off alarm Bells within the community prompting Logan County Children Services to take the two remaining Pilkington children Noah and his sister into protective custody while an investigation was undertaken after a 3-day custody hearing a judge citing a lack of concrete evidence to prove the first two boys were intentionally killed ordered the children to be returned to their parents with orders that Noah be placed on a sleep apnea machine and movement monitor this decision was made despite the parents refusal to sign a care plan or undergo psychological evaluations however just 6 days after the children were back in the household Emergency Services would return to the Pilkington home11 onit Brea okay how is this color is he bluish I imagine probably leis right now in the early hours of August 18th 2015 Britney called 911 reporting that her last remaining son 4-month-old Noah was struggling to breathe paramedics arrived quickly and managed to revive him briefly but the infant was pronounced dead at the hospital shortly after with Noah's death a grim pattern emerged three small boys all under the age of five had died in the Pilkington household within 13 months authorities could no longer dismiss these deaths as tragic coincidences community members were stunned outraged Ed and demanded answers very much pissed off right now they just got this baby back like a few days ago go yeah and then this happens I could never imagine doing something that like that it's just horrible that all this has had to happen something should have been done a long time ago when the first one died there there's no emotion no regret Joseph was thoroughly questioned and not implicated in the deaths of his children suspicion then turned to Britney whose unnervingly calm demeanor after Noah's death raised eyebrows she was asked to come to the local sheriff's office for questioning the same morning as Noah's death and she complied Britney's lawyers claimed that after she waved Her Miranda rights she was subjected to more than 9 hours of interrogation without food water or a bathroom break she was aive ively berated throughout the questioning before finally breaking Under Pressure according to police Britney confessed to smothering her children with their own blankets her reasons were chilling she claimed she feared her sons would grow up to be abusers like their father and believe their deaths would force Joseph to focus on her and their surviving daughter the confession left investigators reeling transforming what had initially appeared to be a tragic series of incidents into one of the most chilling murder cases in Bell fountain's history Britney was swiftly arrested charged with three counts of murder and held on a million dooll bond with the death penalty on the table her trial was scheduled for February 2016 meanwhile as the investigation into the Pilkington household deepened both the police and Britney's biological father were convinced they had the right person I'm satisfied that today uh we have a reason behind it we have the person that's responsible behind it behind bars where she belongs I you know if she admitted to it obviously she done it that's pilkington's father her mother sees it differently she told me off camera she spoke to her daughter by phone and Pilkington told her she did not kill her sons and that confession came after hours of interrogation I do want to talk with her and you know to try and get a little closure on why she did this Britney confessed and it seemed like in open and shut case on the surface but was it as investigators dug deeper into the Pilkington family's past a far more unsettling picture emerged a household riddled with dysfunction long before the children's tragic deaths at the center was Britney Renee cumins born in January 1992 into what seemed like an ordinary upbringing but appearances were deceiving when Britney was seven her parents divorced and her mother began a relationship with none other than Joseph Pilkington yes that Joseph Pilkington The Man Who Would later marry Britney and become a key figure in this horrifying Saga you see where this is going according to the Logan County prosecutor's office Joseph eventually moved into the home when Britney was nine presenting himself as a caring stepfather but behind closed doors investigators uncovered something far more Sinister court filings alleged Joseph exposed Britney to adult material and initiated an in appropriate contact from age 11 this toxic situation took a devastating toll on Britney leaving scars that would shape her future in ways that are hard to Fathom investigators also learned that in 2009 Joseph was enrolled in a court diversion program for a felony child support case from a prior marriage during a meeting with a County employee he disclosed plans to marry 17-year-old Britney whom he impregnated knowing the family's history the employee referred the case to Children's Services B Fountain police investigated for potential sexual battery but prosecutors chose not to pursue charges citing Britney's age just months shy of 18 and the couple's impending marriage detectives with the Logan County Sheriff's Office have said they tried back then to get Brittney pilkington's mother to cooperate in an investigation but she and her daughter refused furthermore Britney told detectives that her father beat her when she was growing up and that caused her to have bad feelings towards her sons after each boy's death she watched as Joseph got closer to his remaining sons and this bothered her even more Britney stated her desire was to have the boys out of the way so Joseph would pay more attention to her and their daughter she also admitted wanting Joseph to find the boys bodies so he could feel the pain of losing them meanwhile the state painted Joseph as a controlling figure who kept Britney isolated a dynamic commonly seen in cases involving women convicted of killing their children although he wasn't implicated in his children's deaths because according to police there was insufficient evidence to prove he knew or should have known that his wife was going to harm the children Joseph's own legal troubles were far from over well Jack we got the indictment this afternoon Britney's husband Joe Pilkington arrested for sexual battery because he was acting as her parent when he got her pregnant when she was 17 now we talked to Britney's biological father tonight and he says he tried to put a stop to their inappropriate inappropriate relationship years ago when he called children services it should have been looked looked into yes Ed cumins hasn't talked to his daughter Britney the last two weeks she's been in jail for murder but you I still love my daughter always will so when he had suspicions years ago about his daughter's relationship with her new father figured Joe we had called Children's Services about this because we felt that something was going on and ever got done about it Logan County's current prosecutor Bill Gosley says Joe should have been arrested years ago because he was Britney's Father Figure parent when he got her pregnant at age 17 and he was also dating Britney's mom at the time court documents say he signed off on medical and school papers as Britney's Guardian tonight 6 years after the alleged sexual battery involving young Britney Joe Pilkington is behind bars in Licking County where family says he's been hiding since his wife's murder arrest Ed is thankful joose finally locked up for what he suspected for all those years especially prosecutor now that he's you he's seeing seeing what we're kind of seeing 10 months after his arrest Joseph pled guilty to A reduced misdemeanor sex charge his sentence included a $250 fine 15 years on the sex offender registry and a suspended 60-day jail term with credit for the 21 days he had already served one year after the death of Noah Joseph agreed to be interviewed by a local news station he started a relationship with Britney when she was underage prosecutors say while he was also involved with Britney's mother and prosecutors say the boy's murders were a result of Britney's jaded relationships with the men in her life but Joe told us that's not the story you know we were involved at the same time and i' I've read all kinds of crazy stuff and you know there there's just no facts in that at all Joe Pilkington sharing his sign of the family Saga he says Logan County Prosecutors distorted when the case broke in summer 2015 he was never married uh to her mother but nonetheless they liveed together as as a micro family they kept telling us that you were her father figure would that be accurate no I I kept getting into circumstances that where the mother wouldn't you know she'd say well can you help me with this I don't have a car Joe said he lived separately from Britney and Britney's mom Lori cumins who prosecutors said he was in a relationship with from the time Britney was 9 years old I started out it was it was a long history throughout years um the mother was um being abused her mother was okay with us getting married and uh she actually called for us to get married Gavin like dinosaurs and N Noah both like giraffes you know and it was just they like being read stories to like kisses and andol and they love being held and you know nothing can replace that Joe was shaking as he spoke up about it for the first time he says he didn't know his wife was being investigated for the first two deaths and says he would have quit his job and stayed home if it meant saving his kids' lives he took their only daughter to get genetic testing as a precaution those were her babies too she was that stone cold that she could fool everybody that's what I don't understand Joe spent time in jail himself for gross sexual imposition after it came out in court he sexually abused Britney before they were married when she was under rage you fell in love with Britney yes now he feels he's being persecuted for their relationship and people are forgetting the investigation into his wife could have saved their third son Noah's life my children are gone and you blame the system I do I will forever blame those people that were involved you don't think they did enough I absolutely do not I just want answers from my little girl and there'll never be any answers and I know that I got to quit looking for them and I got to forgive the people that made mistakes with Joseph's case resolved attention turned to Britney Pilkington would Justice be served for the Pilkington boys it would take more than 3 years years before the case reached a resolution during pre-trial hearings Britney's defense argued that years of abuse and brain damage from childhood lead poisoning had left her mentally impaired they also claimed her confessions were coerced under the intense pressure of police interrogation prosecutors however took a different angle portraying Britney as a mother fully aware of her actions who deliberately murdered her children In Cold Blood in November 2019 the case took a turn when a hearing was held to inform the court that the parties had reached an agreement Council ready yes you are yes you are next case we call is State versus uh Britney R kington uh cr58 225 the defendent is present with her councel Court gdam Mark triplet Tina McFall the uh state is here with the uh County prosecutor Eric Stewart and a senior Assistant Attorney General Dan ceris Council advises the court that a fee agreement has been reached Council want to put the terms of that agreement on the record please yes your as outlined in The Plea petition your honor the state has filed a go of information outlining three charges uh the defendant will enter a ple of guilty to the charge of involuntary manslaughter in count one which is a felony of the first degree murder in count two and murder in count three all in the Bill of information consideration of these please the state will move to dismiss the indictment in this case and the defendant will no longer be charged with the three counts of aggravating murder with death specifications and the state will prosecute no other charges arising from the facts and circum ances leading to the original indictment uh the parties have entered a joint sentencing agreement and will recommend to the court that she receive a sentence of 7 years in prison for count one in voluntary manslaughter an indeterminate sentence of 15 years to life in prison for Count 2 murder and an indeterminate sentence of 15 years to life in prison for count three murder with those sentences all to be served consecutively uh also recognition that she was received jail time credit of 1,555 days as of today's date November 19th 2019 and the parties agree that uh imposition of court costs and other Financial SS will be weighed in this case there would be a 5 years Post Release Control under count one correct that is correct and parole for life under counts two and three that's correct I believe the the parole is a ter of Five Years to Life Five Years to Life minimum minimum five thank you any other uh additions or corrections to the plea agreement no your honor that sets forth the agreement of the parties okay the abil of information has been filed and copy furnished to council yes you yes you uh would the uh Council please present the waiver of grand jury to the defendant for her signature [Applause] fall you want to read the uh defendant statement then and do you want to ask the permission to read it on a seated position next to May Britney Pilkington takes responsibility for the deaths of her children buying through her plea today she's unable to give her own statement at this time because she's so emotionally affected by what's going on around her but she ask that this court hear her through counsel she wants the court to know that she loves and misses all of her children and she Grieves for them every day Britney's had has had a difficult time understanding how her life turned out the way it did over the multiple Court hearings in the years that have gone by Britney has learned that there were people in her life that suspected the sexual abuse that she was enduring and that they were brave enough to report it to Children's Services she wants to thank them all her brother Brandon her Uncle Jeff scabs the ER doctor that treated her members of the prosecutor's office and her teacher for reporting their suspicions she wishes that she had been removed from her home as a child and that her life could have been different as a result as far back as Britney can remember she has lived life with debilitating fear anxiety and Terror on a daily basis she thought it was because she lived with Joe Pilkington since the age of eight and because of all the abuse she endured and she was afraid of him it wasn't until she was evaluated by Dr Jeffrey Madden Dr craon Dr Bergman and Dr Khan that she began to understand that her brain is damaged in an area that might cause the anxiety the fear and the terror she feels she had no idea that there was that that was even possible she wants to especially thank Dr Madden for ordering the Pet Scan that reveal the specific areas of her brain that are damaged so that maybe she can get the proper treatment and Rehabilitation that she needs she also wants to thank the jailers for their protection and kindnesses over the last four years especially Miss Kim and Miss Diamond the inmates that have also extended their protection and kindnesses to her over the years and and she wants to thank the nurses at the jail that were finally successful in getting medication for her anxiety and depression Brittney sincerely hopes that the information gathered in her case can and will help other sexually abused children in the future and to help them to receive help early Britney wants to tell her mother and her father that she forgives them for any shortcomings that they may have had as parents when they failed to protect her from Joe Pilkington because she now believes that no one could have under the circumstances he was just too good at manipulating Britney takes responsibility for the death of the children by pleading guilty to these charges today and sincerely loves misses and Grieves the loss of each one of them she hopes that life will be kinder to her daughter and that someday Haley may be able to forgive her thank you v stand do anything you want to tell the court before the court passes sentence as to a count one the involuntary mans thought of the death in Nile the court pursuant to the plea agreement uh imposes a 7-year uh life 7 years sentence as to count to murder the death of Gavin the court imposes a 15 years to life as to count three that the death of Noah the court imposts the same 15 years to life the um Court finds that this is a case where consecutive sentences are uh permitted even demanded by the law uh that the court Finds Its uh consecutive sentences are necessary to protect the public from future crime and to punish the offender and the consecutive sentences are not disproportionate to the seriousness of the offender's conduct and the danger the offender imposes to the public the court also finds at least two of the multiple offenses were committed as part of one or more courses of conduct and the harm caused by two or more of the multiple offenses so committed with so great un usual that no single prison term for any uh of the offenses committed as part of the course of conduct adequately reflects the seriousness of the offender's conduct in addition uh to the uh so the net result is that the the sentence of the court is 37 uh years minimum uh to life as the great Russian writer philosopher and moral thinker Leo Tolstoy once wrote all the variety all the charm all the beauty of life is made up of light and Shadow for the Pilkington boys Nile Gavin and Noah it seems their short lives were cloaked in Shadow with little opportunity to experience the beauty Tolstoy describes their deaths are a heartbreaking reminder of how easily vulnerable lives can slip through the cracks of a flawed system while Britney Pilkington has been sentenced for the murders of her sons the case still leaves us with profound uncomfortable questions was Justice truly served or were the boys failed long before their deaths not just by Britney but by the systems and people around them and what if Britney herself was she merely a perpetrator or also a victim of the abuse manipulation and isolation she endured can those two identities coexist or does her guilt erase any claim to suffering as we close the chapter on this story one final pressing question remains will Society learn from the failures that allowed these events to occur or will these lessons be forgotten much like the boys themselves were overlooked in life