A Fergus Falls, Minn., woman was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison for the death of a 6-year-old boy she abused while taking care of him.
Bobbie Bishop, 42, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Justis Burland-Arnett, who was left in her care along with his twin brother, Xavier.
Justis was brought to Lake Region Hospital in Fergus Falls in April 2018 and pronounced dead. Police arrested Bishop and her partner, Walter Wynhoff, who later pleaded guilty to manslaughter and is serving a four-year sentence.
Justis was covered head to toe with cuts, sores, scratches and other injuries. He was beaten with a stick and possibly scalded, the Forum News Service reported, citing court documents. The Forum also reported that Bishop's sentence included 10 years in prison and five years of supervised release.
Bishop said in family court filings that the mother of the boys had given up parental rights years ago. She said the boys were taken in by their grandmother in Montana, but that she couldn't handle them and Bishop had agreed to care for the boys, she told investigators.
Bishop later moved with them to Fergus Falls, according to a police statement.
Wynhoff told investigators that Bishop had cared for the boys around the clock and sometimes whipped them with a belt when they soiled themselves. She also taped Justis to the wall at times, he said.
John Reinan • 612-673-7402
