Minnesota Boy Found Dead in Trunk of Mom's Car

A Minnesota mom is behind bars after she allegedly murdered her 6-year-old son, Eli Hart, and then placed his body in the back of her Chevy Impala and drove around with him.

On Friday, officers with the Orono Police Department in Mound, Minnesota, conducted a traffic stop after they witnessed 28-year-old Julissa Thaler driving on one rim with a shattered windshield, according to People.

According to the criminal complaint, officers believed they saw blood on Thaler’s hand, a shotgun shell, a spent shell casing and a bullet hole in the backseat. Officers then released Thaler from the scene, not having yet found the body.

When officers searched the vehicle, they found the body of a child, along with a shotgun. When officers went to her apartment to arrest her, she has tried to wash the clothes she had on and was trying to leave on foot.

The boy was identified by family members as 6-year-old Eli Hart, a kindergarten student at Shirley Hills Elementary School. Based upon his autopsy, Eli was shot possibly up to nine times.

Over the past two years, Eli’s life has centered around a custody battle with his mother and his biological father, Tory Hart. Eli Hart stayed with Nikita Kronberg, a cousin of Thaler’s for over a year. Thaler was granted full custody on May 10th, 2022.

On Monday, Thaler was charged with second-degree intentional murder. A man has also been arrested, but no formal charges have been filed at this time.

A GoFundMe campaign has been set up by Kronberg to help the family with funeral costs.