A Texas grandmother has been jailed on allegations of poisoning her 7-year-old granddaughter by injecting a degreaser called Mean Green into the child’s feeding tube, according to investigators.
Texas grandmother jailed for crime against child
Lisa Campbell-Goins, 56, is accused of faking an illness in the young girl to profit from extensive medical treatments and sympathy donations, according to reports.
Authorities claim Campbell-Goins, who had taken care of the girl since infancy due to the biological mother being unable to provide care, falsely attributed the child’s health issues to a fall at seven months old.
She allegedly told doctors the accident caused a movement disorder called dystonia, but investigators later found the child only had minor injuries.
Between January 2021 and August 2023, the child was hospitalized 17 times with severe symptoms like dehydration, vomiting, and diarrhea, Campbell-Goins claimed.
Doctors inserted a gastric tube to help with medication and nutrition after the child developed ulcers in her gastrointestinal tract, in addition to other internal injuries.
However, a police affidavit stated that doctors were puzzled because the child’s symptoms didn’t match any known medical condition and failed to improve despite treatment.
By January 2024, suspicions arose from a family member who voiced concerns that the girl’s symptoms may have been caused by poison.
The relative noted the presence of nail polish remover near the child, even though Campbell-Goins didn’t have painted nails.
Family members also reported seeing Campbell-Goins administer medications like Benadryl and melatonin through the feeding tube, which they claim she had been doing for years.
Child thrives after Texas grandmother jailed for poisoning
Further investigation by police revealed that Campbell-Goins lacked legal custody of the child. After authorities intervened, the girl’s health improved dramatically.
Court documents state that her gastrointestinal problems resolved, she was taken off numerous medications, and her ability to eat and drink by mouth returned.
A doctor involved in the case reportedly observed, “that once the suspect was removed from the hospital, the victim made almost immediate strides.”
Another doctor reportedly said that witnessing a recovery as sudden as this “with the only thing done by medical professionals is ending interventions and decreasing care” is rare and noted that similar cases typically involved abuse.
State medical experts concluded that the child’s ailments aligned with alkaline poisoning, possibly from nail polish remover or Mean Green Degreaser found in her hospital room.
Additionally, the court documents allege Campbell-Goins pushed for the use of an enclosed tent-style bed while the child was hospitalized, which nurses claimed the grandmother used as a form of punishment for behaviors she didn’t approve of. The girl reportedly spent days to weeks confined to the bed at different times.
Now in the custody of her maternal grandmother, the child has experienced significant improvements. She has had her feeding tube removed, gained weight, and her gastrostomy has been closed.
She is eating and taking medication orally with no problems and has enrolled in school for the first time.
While excelling socially, authorities are monitoring her educational progress to determine whether delays stem from a learning disorder or a lack of prior formal education.
Doctors concluded that her symptoms were consistent with fabricated illness, and the girl was likely the victim of medical child abuse.
Campbell-Goins is also accused of defrauding Medicaid for $600,000 and benefiting financially from online fundraisers under false pretenses.
She has been charged with exploitation of a child, injury to a child, and unlawful restraint, and is currently behind bars in Tarrant County jail on a $150,000 bond.
Munchausen mom faked daughter’s medical conditions
This case follows another recent incident in Texas involving a mother, Denise Zamora, arrested and charged with nine felonies for subjecting her teenage daughter to unnecessary and harmful medical procedures.
Court documents state Zamora faked symptoms such as severe pain and seizures in her daughter, leading to multiple hospitalizations and a feeding tube insertion.
According to an arrest affidavit, Zamora was allegedly caught on camera tampering with the feeding bag to simulate symptoms.
Police accused Zamora of providing false medical records to doctors, resulting in 44 diagnoses, 19 medications, and unnecessary treatments over six years.
One doctor diagnosed Zamora’s behavior as Munchausen syndrome by proxy, a condition where a caregiver fabricates or induces illness in another person.
She was further accused of falsifying her own cancer diagnosis and defrauding Medicaid of up to $1 million.
Zamora, held on a $50,000 bond, faces restrictions forbidding contact with her daughter or anyone under 17 if released.
Nice folks. Probably Kammie fans.