Kansas Mother Sentenced to 215 Months for Adopted Daughter's Murder

On November 12, 2025, a Kansas mother, Crystina Schroer, was sentenced to 215 months in prison for the 2020 murder of her adopted daughter, Natalie Garcia. Authorities discovered Natalie's decomposed remains buried in Crystina's backyard just last year, four years after the child had gone missing.

The case came to light in September 2024 when police responded to Crystina's home for a report that she was threatening to take her own life. During the investigation, Crystina claimed that one of the other adopted children had killed Natalie. However, further questioning of the children revealed a horrific truth.

Natalie's sister told police that in 2020, Crystina had forced the young girl into a small box and then stacked blankets and a baby crib on top of her, leading to Natalie's probable suffocation. The autopsy report later confirmed the cause of death as homicide.

Crystina pleaded no contest to charges including second-degree murder, child abuse, and theft. Despite her attorneys' request for leniency, the judge imposed the maximum sentence on every count, acknowledging the immense suffering Natalie and the other children endured under Crystina's care.