The sad story of Kaitlyn Yozviak

Some experts were skeptical that lice alone could have killed the girl, Kaitlyn Yozviak. The case underscored fears about how the pandemic has cut children off from people who could report neglect.

The 12-year-old girl had no bruises on her body. She was not malnourished, according to prosecutors. She had just eaten before her mother found her unconscious in late August 2020  in their home in rural Georgia.

But she had a lice infestation so severe that the doctors who treated her the day she died said it was enough to kill her.

The girl, Kaitlyn Yozviak, died on Aug. 26, 2020. Her cause of death was listed as cardiac arrest and the secondary cause as severe anemia, the result of repeated lice bites that lowered her blood iron levels, said Brent Cochran, senior assistant district attorney for the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit, which covers Ivey, the town of fewer than 1,000 people where Kaitlyn lived.

The girl’s parents, John Joseph Yozviak, 38, and Mary Katherine Horton, 37, were arrested and charged with second-degree murder and cruelty to children in the second degree.

John Yozviak and Mary Horton are both serving 10-year prison sentences for the death of their daughter in 2020.

A Wilkinson County couple is serving 10-year prison terms after pleading guilty to killing their daughter.

In August 2020, John Yozviak and Mary Horton were accused of causing the death of their 12-year-old daughter Kaitlyn. 

The GBI said the home was cat and bug infested and said the girl may have died from a severe lice infestation. 

One investigator said the girl’s condition was one of the worst cases she’s ever seen.

Their indictment says the couple failed to get the girl proper care. D-FACS records also showed that Kaitlyn’s two brothers were removed from the home due to unsanitary conditions.

In January, the parents both pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. According to court records, prosecutors dropped child-cruelty charges against the couple.

District Attorney T. Wright Barksdale said his office asked for a 20-year sentence on Horton.

Kaitlyn Yozviak 12, John Joseph Yozviak, 38, and Mary Katherine Horton, 37,

Judge Amanda Petty gave Horton 10 years to serve minus time already served, which is already two and half years.
Barksdale said the case was complicated because the GBI medical examiners left the cause of death as “undetermined.”

They also noted that Kaitlyn had a pre-existing condition. After mom was sentenced, in fairness, they offered a plea deal to the dad for the same sentence and he took it.

Barksdale added that they dropped the child-cruelty charges because they came redundant as it is part of the second-degree murder charge.

He said it was an important case that they worked very hard on but they respect the judge’s decision.

Here is a full statement on this case from DA Barksdale: 

Good afternoon,

There are a few additional facts concerning the prosecution of Ms. Horton and Mr. Yozviak that are important for the public to understand. First, the GBI medical examiner determined the manner of the child's death as undetermined. This fact certainly changed the way in which my office prosecuted the case. Ultimately, the decision was made to indict the defendants for murder in the second degree.

In Georgia, a person commits the offense of murder in the second degree when, in the commission of cruelty to children in the second degree, when he or she causes the death of another human being irrespective of malice. See O.C.G.A. 16-5-1. A person commits cruelty to children in the second degree when such person with criminal negligence causes a child under the age of 18 cruel or excessive physical or mental pain. See O.C.G.A. 16-5-70.

On January 9, 2023, Ms. Horton entered a guilty plea to murder in the second degree for negligently failing to provide her daughter medical care which caused the child excessive physical or mental pain. After her guilty plea, a sentencing hearing followed in front of Superior Court Judge Amanda Petty.

The State of Georgia requested a sentence of twenty years to serve fifteen years in prison. Ms. Horton requested Judge Petty to sentence her to ten years to serve. At the end of the sentencing hearing, Judge Petty sentenced Ms. Horton to thirty years to serve ten years in prison.

To be clear, my office asked for more serve time, but the judge sentenced Ms. Horton to less. We respect the judge's decision and appreciate her work. My office is committed to following the law, and the evidence, and presenting the best State's case we can. The District Attorney's role is to seek justice for our victims while ensuring the Constitution is protected. Our heart breaks for Kaitlyn, her friends, and her family.