Alan Steppe
Gertrude Baniszewski (also known as Gertrude Wright and the “Torture Mother”) was the primary perpetrator in the torture and murder of Sylvia Likens in Indianapolis in 1965. Gertrude Baniszewski had seven children:
Paula Baniszewski
Stephanie Baniszewski
John Baniszewski Jr.
Marie Baniszewski
Shirley Baniszewski
James Baniszewski
Dennis Lee Wright Jr.
Some of Baniszewski’s children, notably Paula and John Jr., played roles in the abuse of Sylvia Likens. The Likens case is one of the most notorious and heinous crimes in American history, and members of the Baniszewski family were tried and convicted for their roles in Sylvia’s torture and death. The case has been the subject of books, documentaries, and films, including the movie “An American Crime.”
