A Mother Accused of the Unthinkable: Patricia Stallings Fight for Justice

Serial Napper | True Crime Stories

In the scorching summer of 1989, a mother’s worst nightmare began. Patricia Stallings, just 24 years old, rushed her critically ill baby, Ryan, to the hospital. What followed would send her into a heart-wrenching battle for her life and freedom.

For months, little Ryan had been suffering from severe gastric distress. But on one fateful day, his condition took a terrifying turn. Hospitalized and hooked up to a respirator, Ryan’s prognosis was unclear. However, after days of uncertainty, the doctors finally offered Patricia and her husband, David, a sliver of hope: Ryan would recover. But the relief was short-lived. The diagnosis that followed would devastate them—Ryan had been poisoned.

Doctors discovered ethylene glycol in his blood, the main ingredient in antifreeze. This toxic substance was deadly in large amounts, but the mystery remained: How had Ryan ingested them? While these chemicals were present in their home, Patricia and David couldn’t fathom how their infant could have gotten his hands on them.

The chilling diagnosis set off a series of events that would unravel Patricia’s life. Days after Ryan was released from the hospital, he was removed from his parents' care and placed into foster care. Tragically, only weeks later, he would return to the hospital—and this time, there was no saving him.

As the investigation unfolded, Patricia became the prime suspect. Accused of poisoning her own child, she maintained her innocence. But the nightmare deepened when, while awaiting trial, Patricia gave birth to another child who showed the same concerning symptoms as Ryan. Was history repeating itself?

Was Patricia Stallings truly capable of infanticide, or was there something far more sinister at play? Tune in to hear this gripping true story's shocking twists and turns—one that will leave you questioning everything you thought you knew about justice and motherhood.

Sources:

https://people.com/archive/the-murder-that-never-was-vol-36-no-23/

https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-louis-post-dispatch/10769830/

https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=3660

https://unsolved.com/gallery/patty-stallings/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK559906/

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