Sylvia Likens, The 16-Year-Old Who Was Tortured And Murdered By Caretaker Pt. 2

Anna did not bother to verify the truth of the allegations. Gertrude simply stated, "I don't care what you do to Sylvia." She welcomed Anna into her home and observed as Anna violently attacked Sylvia, throwing her to the ground, hitting her face, and kicking her.

Gertrude informed her own children that Sylvia engaged in prostitution. Subsequently, she instructed Ricky Hobbs, a boy from the neighborhood, and her 11-year-old daughter Marie to use a heated needle to carve the words "I'm a prostitute and proud of it" into Sylvia's abdomen.

At one juncture, Sylvia's older sister Diana attempted to visit the girls who were under Gertrude's care, but she was denied entry at the door. Jenny later recounted how Diana managed to sneak food into the basement where Sylvia was being hidden. A neighbor had also reported these incidents to a public health nurse. However, upon entering the residence and not finding Sylvia, who was locked in the basement, the nurse concluded that nothing was amiss. Baniszewski had also successfully convinced the nurse that she had expelled the Likens girls from her home.