A Colorado woman has pleaded guilty in the death of her daughter after she pretended that the 7-year-old had terminal medical issues. Kelly Renee Turner pled guilty to felony child abuse negligently causing death, and felony theft and felony charitable fraud.
Turner allegedly raised $22,270 from 161 donors througha GoFundMe campaignshe said was created to offset the cost of daughter Olivia Gant’s medical treatment, officials said.
In 2017, Turner, who shared her made-up story with Digital said she wanted to complete a special “bucket list” for Olivia before she passed away from what Turner called a “rare disease” that impacted her organ functions.
“There’s not a lot the doctors can do anymore, so we decided to let her come home and be comfortable, and hopefully be able to fulfill all of her wishes,” Turner toldInsideEdition.com in April 2017. “It’s a feeling that you can’t buy. We know that her time is limited and we don’t know how much longer she has, but it’s incredible when we are able to get out and fulfill her bucket list.”
However, in 2019, Tuner was charged with murder after authorities conducted a year-long investigation and authorities said the mom was treating Olivia for illnesses that the child did not have before withdrawing medical care while Olivia was in hospice.
Authorities said Turner had a history of lying to doctors about her daughter’s diagnosis and soliciting donations.
In 2018, the child’s body was exhumed and there was no evidence that she died from “intestinal failure,” as her mother had claimed. Authorities did not disclose the child’s cause of death.
Olivia made headlines in 2017 after she got to be a firefighter for a day as part of her bucket list. According to the indictment, the Make-A-Wish Foundation also gave her $11,000 so she could have a “bat princess” costume party.
Doctors became suspicious after Turner began to tell doctors that her older daughter had bone pain, NBC News reported.
The older daughter was separated from her mom as the investigation went underway, NBC News reported.
Turner is set to be sentenced on Feb. 9, according to court records.