The Murder of Dakota Levi Stevens
| Full Name | Dakota Levi Stevens |
| Date of Birth | October 21, 2013 |
| Age at Death | 10 |
| Born In | Munster, Indiana |
| Died In | South Bend, Indiana |
| Sibling | Nora Faye (younger sister) |
Dakota Levi Stevens
Dakota Levi Stevens was born on October 21, 2013, in Munster, Indiana. He went by Levi to his biological family. He had a younger sister, Nora Faye, with whom he was close. Both children were removed from their parents' home after their mother gave up her parental rights and their father passed away in 2021 from a blood infection related to his struggle with addiction.
In the years that followed, Dakota and Nora moved through a series of foster placements and spent time with extended family members, including an aunt in Gary, Indiana, who sought to adopt them but was not awarded custody. Dakota's former foster father from 2019 to 2021, Hayden Hetzel, described him as a boy full of energy and affection. Nora was eventually adopted, and Dakota was placed with Jennifer Wilson in Liberty Township on April 5, 2024, just three weeks before his death.
Family and loved ones remembered Dakota as a creative, curious, and bright child. His passions included digging for bugs, catching frogs, playing outside with his sister, and building with Legos. His aunt Ana Parrish-Parker described him as a boy whose eyes popped open every morning ready to go. He was the kind of child who named himself after any bug he found, telling his uncle, "Uncle Levi is here," every time he picked one up.
What We Know
On April 25, 2024, Porter County Sheriff's Office deputies were dispatched to the 200 block of Falcon Way in Liberty Township, Indiana at approximately 3:37 p.m. for a report of an unconscious, non-breathing 10-year-old. When officers arrived, they found Dakota Levi Stevens lying on the ground near the driveway of the residence while another person performed CPR. Officers observed bruising on Dakota's lower neck and chest area.
Approximately 30 minutes before emergency responders arrived, Dakota had run to a neighbor's home and asked her to adopt him. He told her that his foster parents hit him in the face and would not allow him to call his caseworker. The neighbor reported she did not observe any signs of physical injury on Dakota at that time. Shortly after, Jennifer Wilson arrived and took Dakota back to the residence.
Once home, Wilson stated Dakota continued to act up. She told police she laid across his midsection to restrain him and called his caseworker. Ring doorbell camera footage from the home captured the entire incident. In one video, Dakota can be heard screaming while Wilson is on top of him near his neck and head area. In a second video lasting nearly seven minutes, Wilson is positioned on the boy and he does not move for the duration. Wilson later told responding officers, "I was laying on him and he was acting bad." A CT scan at Northwest Health found severe brain swelling consistent with oxygen deprivation. Dakota was airlifted to South Bend Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead two days later, on April 27, 2024.
How It Unfolded
The Investigation
Porter County Sheriff's detectives opened a homicide investigation after the St. Joseph County Coroner's Office ruled Dakota's death a homicide in June 2024. The cause was determined to be mechanical asphyxia, which occurs when an external physical force restricts a person's ability to breathe. An autopsy revealed Dakota had sustained severe brain swelling consistent with extended oxygen deprivation, as well as organ and soft tissue damage, liver and lung hemorrhaging, and bruising on his lower neck and chest.
Central to the investigation was Ring doorbell camera footage obtained from the Wilsons' residence. The footage showed Wilson already positioned across Dakota near his neck and head in an initial 20-second clip, during which Dakota could be heard screaming throughout. A second video, approximately six minutes and 48 seconds in duration, showed Wilson still on top of the child while he remained completely motionless. Investigators also noted that during the incident, Wilson was simultaneously on a phone call with Dakota's caseworker and communicating with her husband through the camera system, telling him Dakota was having "one of his days." When Dakota stopped moving, Wilson asked him if he was faking and rolled him over before calling 911.
Wilson did not remain in Indiana after the incident. Investigators used license plate reader data to locate her vehicle and she was taken into custody on July 13, 2024, in New Buffalo, Michigan. A probable cause affidavit was filed on July 8 in Porter Superior Court.
The Accused
He Is Not Forgotten
Dakota Levi Stevens was ten years old. He loved bugs and frogs and being outside. He carried Legos in his pockets and greeted every creature he found like it was an old friend. He was a child full of wonder, and the people who loved him knew it from the moment they met him. In his short life, he moved through homes that were not always safe, through a system that could not always protect him, and still he kept going, kept reaching, kept asking for something better. On the morning of April 25, 2024, he ran to a neighbor's door and asked her to take him in. That act of courage, the bravery of a ten-year-old asking for help, is part of who Dakota Levi Stevens was.
His biological family fought for him while he was alive, and they have continued to fight in his name since his death. His aunts, his grandmother, his former foster family, and the community that rallied around his memory have organized vigils, protests, and legislative efforts to ensure that no other child is failed the way Dakota was. The petition for Levi's Law, calling for mandatory police contact in cases of suspected foster child abuse, carries his name forward.
Dakota is buried at Old Maplewood Cemetery in Crown Point, Indiana. His grave has been visited and decorated by family through every season since his passing. His family believes that if he had made it out of the system, he would have been impactful. He already was.
Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline: 1-800-422-4453 — 24/7 crisis intervention, information, and referrals for child abuse concerns.
Indiana DCS Child Abuse Reporting: 1-800-800-5556 — To report suspected abuse or neglect of a child in Indiana foster care.
Levi's Law Petition: Search "Let's Get Levi's Law Started" on Change.org — Dakota's family is advocating for mandatory police contact in suspected foster child abuse cases.
Chicago Tribune / Post-Tribune — Amy Lavalley, Sentencing Coverage, January 17, 2025
Chicago Tribune / Post-Tribune — Amy Lavalley, Wilson Drops Appeal, June 10, 2025
Chicago Tribune / Post-Tribune — Amy Lavalley, One Year Later, April 25, 2025
NBC Chicago — Probable Cause Affidavit Details, July 2024; Sentencing Coverage, January 2025
CBS Chicago — Jennifer Lee Wilson Sentencing, January 2025
NWI Times — Reckless Homicide Charges Filed, July 2024
WGN-TV — Court Documents, August 2024
Crime Online — Wilson Sentenced, January 2025
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