Three women are accused of torturing a 6-year-old girl inside their North Carolina home for more than a year until she died in December, when the girl weighed only 27 pounds, according to police.
On Wednesday, February 4, all of the women — Susan Robinson, Tonya McKnight, and Tery’n McKnight — were charged with first-degree murder in the death of Dominique Moody on December 16, 2025, court records viewed by Us Weekly show.
Tonya, Dominique’s legal guardian, and the two other women live together at the Charlotte home, where they were accused of extensive abuse against Dominique, including keeping her inside a dog crate, starving her, forcing her to stay in a soiled diaper, and beating her, according to an affidavit obtained by Us.
Ahead of Dominique’s death, Tonya would regularly have Susan and Tery’n watch the girl and Tonya’s other children who live at the home, the affidavit says. Tonya is Dominique’s aunt, according to the Charlotte Observer.
A detective wrote in the affidavit that “Dominique was tortured by being forced to watch the other children eat, being forced to sit in her own feces and urine, in a diaper, imprisoned in a dog crate or bathroom for days.”
“She was also consistently bound, beaten, and/or duct taped as punishment,” the filing continues.
Authorities in North Carolina continue to investigate the death of a 6-year-old girl, allegedly at the hands of her court-appointed guardian, Us Weekly has learned. Susan Lee Robinson, 61, was arrested on Saturday, December 20, and formally charged with one count of intentional child abuse resulting in serious physical injury, a felony, and four counts […]
Tonya, Susan and Tery’n — who were initially charged with child abuse charges in connection with Dominique’s death — appeared in Mecklenburg County Superior Court on the murder charges on Thursday, February 5, the Charlotte Observer reported.
They were each appointed public defenders, according to court records, which did not immediately list the names of their legal representation.
The Mecklenburg County Public Defender’s Office did not immediately respond to an inquiry from Us on Friday, February 6.
According to the affidavit, on December 16, officers responded to a call about Dominique “not breathing” at Tonya’s Charlotte home. The girl was then taken to a hospital and pronounced dead.
Her body was covered in multiple scars and open wounds, including one wound on her left ankle that appeared to have been caused by a burn, the filing says.
“The most significant injuries were defects to her genitalia and buttocks,” the detective wrote in the affidavit.
When forensic investigators interviewed the other children inside the home, they told them that Tonya forced Dominique to live in “a small enclosure inside the residence” and that she was “often being bound with black tape, and being struck with [a] white belt,” the affidavit says.
“They further advised that when Dominique was found not breathing, she was placed in front of the kitchen stove to warm her up and bring her back to life,” the filing continues. In the affidavit, the detective described the three-bedroom residence as “extremely unkempt, with a strong odor of feces and urine” as well as multiple rats “scurrying through it.”
“The residence had a mixture of animal and human feces throughout,” the affidavit states.
Evidence obtained from interviews with Tonya, Susan and Tery’n, as well as from their cell phones, revealed they were all involved in torturing Dominique, according to police.
The evidence confirmed “the duct taping, dog crating, beating, and rat activity over many years of Dominique Moody’s life,” the affidavit says.
Tonya was granted custody of Dominique in September 2021 after Tonya’s sister asked her to care for her daughter, according to court records reviewed by the Charlotte Observer.
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In a court filing obtained by the newspaper, Tonya wrote that her sister made the request “because she is unstable and not equipped to care for the children.”
Tonya, Susan and Tery’n are being held in jail without bond, records show.
If you or someone you know is experiencing child abuse, call or text Child Help Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.
