The adoptive parents of the surviving older brother of child murder victim Scott “Scotty” McMillan were horrified to learn that another child had died — also from alleged physical abuse — in the same Chester County town and under similar circumstances as their son almost 10 years ago.
“It shocks me that this abuse can happen in our county, and that schools don’t pick it up,” said the father of Scotty’s older brother, who will turn 16 later this year. “I don’t understand how this can happen.”
“I don’t want to blame the schools, necessarily,” added the boy’s mother. “But if you can put the child in a cyber school, where they are not supervised, that ought to send up red flags.”
On Tuesday, District Attorney Christopher de Barrena-Sarobe announced the arrests of Rendell A. Hoagland and Cindy Marie Warren, a day after they were taken into custody and three days after police were called to their home in West Caln, and the investigation into the death of 12-year-old Malinda Hoagland began. She died on Saturday, May 4 — emaciated, battered and bruised, allegedly at the hands of her father, Hoagland, and his girlfriend, Warren.
The pair are now being held at the Chester County Prison in lieu of $1 million bail, charged with attempted homicide, aggravated assault of a child, unlawful restraint, recklessly endangering another person, endangering the welfare of a child, and conspiracy. The investigation is continuing by authorities, said de Barrena-Sarobe on Friday, and further charges are expected.
A preliminary hearing for both defendants has been scheduled for 9 a.m. July 8 before Magisterial District Judge J. Timothy Arndt III of Honeybrook. Hoagland is represented by defense attorney Stuart Crichton of West Chester, while Warren is represented by the Chester County Public Defender’s Office. Neither Crichton nor Public Defender Nathan Schenker would comment on the case last week.
In 2009, Warren, 45, was sentenced to three to seven years in state prison in the case of the assault on her son, who was 3 years old at the time of the incident. She was charged with endangering the welfare of a child in that 2007 case, after having escaped being charged with homicide in the earlier death of her 2½-year-old stepdaughter because she cooperated with investigators against her then-husband, McKinley Warren Jr., who was later sentenced to 25-to-50 years in jail.
News of her criminal past left the father of Scotty’s brother outraged.
“Why on earth would (the county Department of Children Youth and Families) not have been more involved and why would they even allow her to have her son again after she got out of jail?” he asked.
There are no clear answers.
Chester County spokeswoman Rebecca Brain said officials at CYF were cooperating with the police investigation and could not comment on the matter because of confidentiality concerns.
In her statement, Brain said CYF staff, “are working closely with law enforcement to provide support and services, as the death of Malinda Hoagland is investigated. We remind everyone in the community to call ChildLine should they suspect or witness child abuse or neglect.
The ChildLine number, 1-800-932-0313, will be answered any time day or night.
On Wednesday, Coatesville Area School District Superintendent Catherine Van Vooren said in a written statement that the school district, where Malinda was enrolled from spring 2022 through December 2023, had had some concerns about Malinda’s welfare.
“Our staff diligently reported concerns about her welfare to the state agency that receives and manages concerns.” The superintendent then said that “shortly thereafter” Malinda withdrew from school and enrolled in a cyber charter school. The victim’s brother remained at King’s Highway Elementary School and is now “in protective custody and is expected to be relocated to another county and school district,” Van Vooren wrote.
Scotty’s brother’s mother said that abusive behavior can in some cases be hidden by the perpetrators when they isolate the child from the outside, much like Malinda’s father did by entering her in cyber school.
Authorities agreed.
In his written arrest affidavit for Hoagland and Warren, Chester County Detective Bernard Martin, who is leading the investigation, wrote that “Warren and Hoagland secluded (the girl) from mandatory reporters and others who may have offered her assistance in order to physically abuse and torment the child and used her seclusion to facilitate their crimes on an ongoing basis over a period of several months.
“They acted in concert with the intention of terrorizing and abusing the child and continued their actions until the child’s death,” he said.
Scotty’s brother’s parents, who live in the Chester Springs area, said in an interview Friday they had not known of the death of 12-year-old Malinda Hoagland until a reporter called them about the case. Their week had been busy celebrating the college graduation of one of their other children.
But reading the accounts of her death brought back thoughts of what happened to Scotty and his brother in October and November 2014, when the children began to be physically abused by their mother and her new boyfriend.
MediaNews Group is withholding the names of the parents to protect the identity of the surviving victim, who suffers the after-effects of the trauma he experienced and survivor’s guilt surrounding his brother’s death. The child was 6 years old when the abuse began.
Scotty McMillan died on Nov. 4, 2014, of multiple blunt force trauma brought on by weeks of beating and torture he suffered at the hands of Gary Fellenbaum III and the 3-year-boy’s mother, Jillian Tait, at the trailer home Tait had brought the children to after meeting Fellenbaum.
The murder shocked members of the Chester County community for its savage nature, as has Malinda’s death, and drew heartbreaking headlines around the world with its accompanying photograph of the red-headed Scotty sitting on the lap of an Easter Bunny model. At the time, then-Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan called the case “an American horror story.”
Beginning in October 2014, according to the allegations set forth in the case, Fellenbaum began physically abusing both of Tait’s sons. The abuse included punches and beatings, but also whipping with a crudely fashioned “cat o’nine tails,” and taping the boys to chairs or hanging them upside down by their feet.
Fellenbaum’s beating of Scott McMillan escalated to the point where the boy could not hold down his food. Angered, Fellenbaum allegedly punched him in the face so hard he fell out of his chair, and later punched him in the stomach. The boy began vomiting and later passed out. He never awoke.
Tait and Fellenbaum were charged in the child’s death. Tait is currently serving 42-94 years in state prison. Fellenbaum pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison plus 10 to 20 years.
The parents of Scotty’s brother adopted him after Fellenbaum and Tait were arrested. They have struggled over the years to address his needs, but say that he is progressing and is physically healthy.
They expressed concern for the other child who was in the home with Hoagland and Warren, a younger boy who would likely have witnessed at least some of what was happening to Malinda.
“They’ve got a long road ahead,” said the adoptive mother, of whoever takes over parenting of the boy.
To contact staff writer Michael P. Rellahan call 610-696-1544.
