The parents of 5-year-old slain boy, Andrew “A.J.” Freund, pleaded not guilty to numerous of charges on Friday, as people packed inside a Woodstock, Illinois, courtroom.
Chicago Tribune reports that Andrew Freund Sr. and JoAnn Cunningham, parents of A.J., both pleaded not guilty to murder, aggravated domestic abuse, and numerous other charges in connection with the little boy’s death. In total, the pair face 41 charges.
Cunningham, visibly pregnant, was accompanied by her lawyer, Rick Behof, and two bulletproof vest-wearing Correctional Emergency Response Team (CERT) officers. Freund Sr. entered the McHenry County courtroom with his attorney, Henry Sugden, and two CERT officers.
Documents: Grand jury indicts Andrew Freund, JoAnn Cunningham https://t.co/c3PdZimtWv
— The Herald-News (@Joliet_HN) May 10, 2019
According to NBC Chicago, both Freund and Cunningham requested a jury trial, while the judge approved a motion for psychological evaluations.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, A.J. was found dead and buried in a shallow grave on April 24. Investigators found him on rural land close to Gayle Drive and Dean Street in Woodstock, Illinois.
McHenry County Interim Coroner David Devane, who released the boy’s official cause of death results, noted that A.J. had “craniocerebral trauma as a consequence of multiple blunt force injuries.” According to Mayo Clinic, craniocerebral trauma means a traumatic brain injury, typically caused by violent blows to the head.
Freund Sr. also told the dispatcher he had an early doctor’s appointment on the morning of April 18, but when he returned home between 8:15 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., his son was missing. The man said he thoroughly checked the home and the surrounding areas and couldn’t find A.J.
“I have no idea where he could be,” Freund said.
According to court documents, Crystal Lake police later found a video of A.J. on his mother’s phone. Cunningham was apparently seen on the video scolding and screaming at the boy as he laid naked on a bare mattress, covered in bruises on his face and body.
Freund Sr. reportedly told investigators that during the video, the little boy was being punished for urinating in his bed, then lying about “soiled underwear.”
“AJ is seen to (be) naked except for some small bandages around both wrists and circling his hips,” the affidavit read. “AJ is seen to be holding an ice pack to his face and when he removes it he is seen to have deep red bruising around his eyes, and yellowish-green bruising around his neck and upper chest. It did not appear from the video that AJ received professional medical attention.”
McHenry County sheriff’s Detective Edwin Maldonado stated that when confronted with cellphone evidence, Freund Sr. said they started putting A.J. in cold showers afterward, when Cunningham suggested giving the boy punishment without as many beatings.
On the night before the boy died, on April 15, Freund Sr. allegedly forced the boy into an ice cold shower for 20 minutes before putting him to bed.
“JoAnn [wanted] to stop with the hard physical beatings and do some less violent form of punishment. Drew said cold showers was decided (as the alternative). Drew said on or about … 4/15/19, AJ had lied about soiled underwear and he was subjected to a cold shower. Drew said he helped AJ out of the shower after he’d been there approximately 20 minutes, and put AJ to bed ‘cold, wet, and naked.”
The following morning, Cunningham found A.J. unresponsive and reportedly searched for “cpr” on Freund Sr.’s phone. By then, it was too late. Freund Sr. told police that his son had died.
Cunningham has been charged with five counts of murder, four counts of aggravated battery, two counts of aggravated domestic battery and one count of failure to report a missing or child death.
Freund Sr. has been charged with five counts of murder, two counts of aggravated battery, one count of aggravated domestic battery and one count of failure to report a missing or child death. He’s also charged with two counts of concealment of homicidal death, as authorities said he was the one that buried the boy in a neighboring town.
In addition to the previous charges, both suspects now face additional charges of aggravated domestic battery and aggravated battery, in connection with the alleged beating of A.J. a month before he died. They’ve also been charged with unlawful restraint, child endangerment, and reckless conduct. Freund was also charged with a one count of making a false complaint to 911.
Both suspects remain behind bars on $5 million bond amounts, each.
[Feature Photo: A.J. Freund/Handout]
