Summary
Overview
This Crime Junkie episode tells the tragic story of six-year-old Joseph 'Jojo' King III, who died in February 2020 after being found unresponsive in his Grand Prairie, Texas home. His stepfather Brandon Hale claimed Jojo got trapped in a toy chest, but when investigators tested this theory, it didn't hold up. Despite evidence suggesting foul play, including concerns about possible homicidal drowning, Brandon was only convicted of violating probation from a previous child abuse case. Jojo's father, a homicide detective, had tried desperately to get his son out of that home after Brandon was indicted for beating Jojo with a belt in 2019, but the system failed to protect him.
The Fatal Night and Initial Response
On February 23, 2020, Joseph King Jr., a homicide detective in Atlanta, received a devastating midnight call that his six-year-old son Jojo was unconscious and hospitalized in Texas. Brandon Hale, Jojo's stepfather, claimed he found the boy trapped in a toy chest after taking a nap. When Joseph arrived at the hospital, Jojo was on life support with severe brain injury from oxygen deprivation. For Joseph, both as a father and a detective, Brandon's story immediately raised red flags—especially knowing Brandon had previously been indicted for abusing Jojo.
- Joseph King Jr. received a call just before midnight on February 23, 2020, that his six-year-old son Jojo was unconscious and hospitalized
- Brandon Hale claimed he took a nap, woke up around 5pm to give Jojo medication, searched for him, and found him not breathing in a toy chest
- Jojo had suffered severe brain injury from lack of oxygen and was on life support at Children's Medical Center in Dallas
- Joseph King Jr. is a homicide detective in Atlanta, which immediately made him suspicious of Brandon's story
" Does my son have to die for someone to help us? "
The 2019 Abuse Case and Failed System
Nearly a year before Jojo's death, in March 2019, teachers noticed he couldn't sit down and had multiple loop-shaped bruises on his thighs. Jojo told them his stepfather Brandon beat him with a belt. Despite DFPS ruling 'reason to believe' for physical abuse and Brandon being indicted for injury to a child, Jojo's biological father couldn't get custody. Every agency Joseph turned to for help—DFPS, police, family court—told him they couldn't remove Jojo from the home or issue a protective order because he lived with his abuser.
- In March 2019, teachers discovered loop-shaped bruises across both of Jojo's thighs; he told them Brandon beat him with a belt
- DFPS ruled 'reason to believe' for physical abuse, meaning they officially determined abuse occurred
- Brandon was indicted for injury to a child but received only four years deferred adjudication probation with no jail time
- Joseph tried DFPS, family court, and police to get custody but was told they don't remove children in these situations
- A judge wouldn't sign a protective order because Jojo lived in the same home as his abuser
" Does my son have to die for someone to help us? "
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