The Murder of Toddler S.B.
S.B.
S.B. was born in 2022 in Lima, Montana, a small town in Beaverhead County in southwestern Montana. His identity is protected in all court documents. He was almost three years old when he died. His full name has not been publicly released.
S.B. was born with spina bifida, club feet, and hydrocephalus, a condition in which fluid accumulates in the brain. A Dillon doctor who reviewed his medical history confirmed he was immobile as a result of his disabilities. He could not walk. He could only move by army crawling. His speech was at the level of a one-year-old despite being almost three. He was entirely dependent on the adults in his home for food, water, and care.
His mother kept him in a padded section of an upstairs bedroom. She placed water in a to-go bottle and put food on the floor so he could army crawl to it. She slept downstairs with one of her other children at night.
The other children in the home later told police they remembered hearing S.B. crying. They said they believed he had died when they stopped hearing his cries. He was found by deputies on October 16, 2025, in an advanced state of decomposition, on a pile of laundry and trash next to a mattress, covered with a sweatshirt, in a cold room with an air conditioning unit running.
What We Know
Nichole Lynn Boyer, 28, lived at 312 Main Street in Lima, Montana, with her four children, including S.B., and her father, identified as Cox in court documents. S.B. was the only child in the home with significant disabilities. He was entirely dependent on others for food, water and care.
According to Boyer's own statements to investigators, S.B. first became sick in July 2025 with what she described as a cold. In August he developed a fever, which she attributed to teething. She told police she did not seek medical attention because she believed she had everything she needed at home, including medications and a nebulizer. She said she checked on him three to four times per day and would leave food and water within his reach.
Boyer told investigators she did not remember the month of September. At some point during that month she stopped checking on S.B. regularly. She admitted she stopped giving him water in September and could not remember the last time he had eaten. She told police she knew S.B. had died in September but convinced herself he was still alive. She moved out of the upstairs area and began sleeping downstairs with one of her other children, leaving S.B. alone upstairs.
On the morning of October 16, 2025, Boyer called 911 and told dispatch her son had been sick for months and was now dead. She told the operator she had called the police on herself. When the Beaverhead County undersheriff arrived outside the home, Boyer met him and said "Just take me to jail." Deputies entered the home, immediately detected the smell of decomposition, and found the house in a state of extreme filth, covered in trash, rotten food, and animal waste throughout. S.B.'s body was found in the upstairs bedroom in an advanced state of decomposition, lying on a pile of laundry and trash next to a mattress, covered by a sweatshirt, with an air conditioning unit running in the cold room. Three other children and the adult in the home were immediately removed by authorities.
How It Unfolded
The Investigation
The Beaverhead County Sheriff's Office and the Montana Department of Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation. Boyer was interviewed by DCI agents at the scene. She was cooperative and made numerous self-incriminating statements, telling investigators about the months of declining care, her inability to remember September, her knowledge that S.B. had died that month, and her decision to stop checking on him. She admitted her lack of prioritizing him led to his death.
Investigators interviewed Boyer's family members, including her mother, stepfather, and biological father. Her mother provided an account of the phone call on the morning of October 16, during which Boyer alternated between saying S.B. was sleeping and that he was dead. Boyer's father, identified as Cox, was also living in the home at the time and was later charged with negligent homicide, as court documents indicated he was present in the squalid and unsanitary home during the period of S.B.'s death and did not intervene or report the child's condition.
A Dillon doctor reviewed S.B.'s medical history and confirmed for court documents that S.B. was born with spina bifida and was entirely immobile due to his disabilities. The court documents described the home as squalid and unsanitary. Boyer's defense requested that S.B.'s body not be cremated to allow an independent expert to examine the evidence before trial.
The Accused
He Is Not Forgotten
He was almost three years old. He had spina bifida, club feet, and hydrocephalus. He could not walk. He moved by army crawling across the floor to reach the food and water that had been placed there for him. He had the speech of a one-year-old. He was entirely dependent on the people around him for everything he needed to survive.
The other children in that home heard him crying. They knew when he stopped. He was alone in that room for weeks before anyone called for help. A memorial service was held for him on November 4, 2025. His mother was in jail when it took place. She asked to attend. The state objected.
His name is protected in court documents. He is identified only as S.B. He was born in 2022. He died in September 2025, alone, in a cold room in Lima, Montana. A small town in Beaverhead County. His face has not been made public. We do not know what he looked like. We know he existed. We know he deserved care. We say what we can: he mattered. He is not forgotten.
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