Murdered by Her Own Family for Alleged Demons - The Amy Burney Story

0:00 A Bronx winter night chilled every alley and Ave. the city holding its breath. A flickering neon sign casts an eerie. Glow over frost coated sidewalks. Marked by the footprints of a missing 5 year old girl. 3. Weeks had passed since her disappearance. Her absence resonated in the. City. The world paused, disrupted by a tragedy. Too grave to understand A young girl lost. Authorities charged the. Mother and grandmother with the girl. 'S death after they. Forced her to drink a lethal mixture of ammonia, pepper, vinegar and olive oil, and then disposed of her body in the. Garbage. They suspected that a garbage truck picked up the.

0:41 Body and transported it to the Fresh Kills landfill on Staten Island. Authorities classified the case. As a homicide after Rosa Downing, also known as Wilkerson, confessed, this tragic incident serves as a harsh reminder that despite. Efforts to protect. Children from domestic violence Some. Cases still slip through the cracks. Welcome to No Tears. For black girls. A true crime series created, written and produced by award-winning writer Jon Reedberg and hosted by Samantha Paul. Amy Michelle Burney and her family lived in A5. Story walk up. Building on University Ave. in what was considered a decent, well maintained neighborhood. Ironically, this was not where her story began. She originally resided in Miami.

1:29 Florida before. Relocating to New York City with her mother, Angelic Bernie, who was sent to live in Florida by her mother and two younger siblings, the basement apartment of their building served as Amy's home until her untimely passing. Rosa Downing often doubted. Her abilities. As a mother and struggled to raise her four children. Which led. Her to send them to live with her brother and sister-in-law. This occurred around 1980 when the kids were young in their new home in Miami. They were. Raised as if they were part of their. Extended family Fast forward to Angelique's senior year of high school. Where she. Dropped out and moved 4. Hours away to. Lakeland, FL. She already had.

2:11 Children of her own, including her eldest daughter Amy. For a while. Things seemed normal on weekends. The kids would. Visit their Miami family who helped raise them and their mother Amy was. Described as a bright, lively child. With an. Insatiable curiosity. And boundless energy. She loved interacting with anyone she. Crossed paths with. And could hold conversations for hours on end. Her siblings were her best friends and playmates. In many ways, she was just like any other. Child her age. Full of life and potential. But then in 1996, everything changed as Amy boarded a plane headed for New York.

2:55 City's Bronx. Borough Leaving behind her sunny Florida home for the concrete jungle, they settled on University Ave. where Amy's grandmother lived. According to reports, Downing's desire to reconnect with her mother Rosa, after being apart for so long motivated this move. Rosa was essentially a stranger to Amy, having been sent away to Florida at a young age. The move from Florida to New York was a significant one, trading warm weather for harsh winters and familiar faces for new ones. Amy began kindergarten at Public School 226 on West Burnside Ave., also known as Nadia J Pagan Primary School.

3:36 Just a short. Distance from their new home. This should have been a time for Amy to make new friends, learn new things, and grow alongside her peers. It was a year. After they arrived in New York City when everything would change. February 27th, 1997. Brought about whispers of possible. Abuse inflicted upon young Amy. Teachers at PS. 226 noticed the untreated scratches and head injury on her fragile frame and an investigation was launched by the Administration for Children's. Services despite. The family's excuse of a minor fall in her room. A meeting was arranged for March 6th. But as the days passed, more.

4:18 Injuries were discovered during a routine visit to Amy's school on March 10th. Her mother claimed they were from severe bruises and sprains but did not explain as to. How they occurred? Even though suspicions grew stronger, the hospital did not report the injuries. To the child. Abuse hotline and when social workers returned to the home in April and May of 1997, they were told that Amy had. Left to live. With relatives in. Florida, however, further. Investigations revealed that these. So-called relatives. Did not exist and that Amy's whereabouts were unknown. The cold. Truth became clear they had been lied to all along.

5:01 The mother and grandmother of the. Child had a dark secret. Which was gradually coming to light. The young girl, Amy, only five years old, was nowhere to be found. On May 16th, 1997, Angelique Burnie appeared in front of a judge facing relentless questioning about. Her daughter's whereabouts, but she. Remained silent, unable to provide any answers. It seemed as if the child had simply vanished into thin air. But authorities knew there. Was more to the story. As a result. Bernie was immediately. Arrested. And taken to Rikers. While her other. Children were placed in foster. Care. Over the following days, both Bernie and her mother were interrogated.

5:44 Separately by police, despite hours of. Adamantly denying any involvement or knowledge of where Amy could be, the child's grandmother eventually made a shocking confession. She revealed that in the months before her disappearance, Amy had been experiencing severe stomach pains and instead of seeking help for their young. Daughter, they left her to suffer. Tragically, Amy. Died as a result. Of this neglect, but instead of reporting her death and seeking justice for their actions, the family. Chose to hide. Her body in their own home for nearly. Two weeks her. Small decomposing body lay on a mattress while her family went about. Their daily lives.

6:26 And when the smell became too unbearable, they disposed. Of her body like trash. As news of this heinous act spread. Authorities were appalled. And disgusted. It all seemed too unreal. To be true with a history of abuse. Allegations against them. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that this family was guilty of extreme neglect. At the very. Least upon further investigation and interviews with neighbors, it became clear that Amy's life had been nothing but misery since she arrived in New. York isolated from. Others and. Rarely allowed outside. Or to attend school regularly. She had no chance at a normal childhood. The signs of her suffering were there all along for anyone to see, yet no one intervened in the end.

7:12 She was discarded. Like mere trash, forgotten and unloved. By those who should have protected her. Justina Morales was yet another tragic. Case with excuses. Emerging like old wine from a. Cracked Bottle The classic tales of. Relocation and family troubles were thrown around, but little did anyone know that Justina's final resting place had already been decided. It wasn't until authorities made their way to her supposed home that they. Realized the bitter truth. Justina was long gone, but it wasn't natural causes. That took her life. No, it was something much darker that lingered in her grandmother and mother's minds. They believed. Justina to be possessed by a demon, consumed by evil, and so in their twisted attempts to save her. Soul they force.

8:01 Fed her a lethal concoction of household ingredients, pepper. Olive oil. Ammonia, vinegar, anything they could find to exorcise the demons within. As Justina took her last breaths in agony and confusion, these two women held her down and silenced her screams with tape over her mouth and when she had breathed her. Last, they casually discarded her body with all. Other unwanted trash? It's almost too. Horrible to believe that such cruelty could exist. Within those meant to care. For us, but as authorities search. Through the landfill. Where they believed. Justina's remains lay hidden the. Reality of the.

8:42 Situation became painfully clear. This was not just a tragic accident or unfortunate circumstance. This was a murder at the hands of those. Closest to her. The news. Spread like wildfire. Shocking and disturbing all. Who heard it? How could A5 year old child suffer such a fate? How could a mother and grandmother betray their own flesh and blood in such a heinous manner? These questions echoed throughout the community as authorities combed through evidence and arrested 25 year old Angelique Burnie and 46 year old Rosa Wilkerson for their unspeakable actions. Justina never stood a chance against the darkness within those who should have loved her most. As the.

9:28 Truth of her final moments came to light a sense of grief and outrage. Settled over. The city mourning for a young life taken most. Horrifically the authorities. Announced the arrest of the two women in connection with Amy's murder. Which occurred just three weeks prior the details. Were gruesome. It appeared that she had been forced to ingest dangerous chemicals and her body was then disposed. Of like trash. The family had been under scrutiny by child services for months. After reports of suspicious. Bruises on Amy's face surfaced from her teacher, but despite this monitoring, no one could have. Predicted the tragic. End that awaited. Her It was a sad day. For everyone involved.

10:11 But the. Aggressive investigation led. To the arrest of these perpetrators. However, some tragedies cannot be. Avoided. And this was one of them. And while the community on University Ave. may have been in disbelief about their neighbors heinous actions. The. Reality was undeniable, a young and innocent. Life was lost. But this wasn't the first time such. Horror struck. This neighborhood memories of Nadine Lockwood's death. Just a year. Prior came flooding back, followed by the haunting image of Justina Morales, who was left in an abandoned lot after being tortured by her mother and her boyfriend. For days, detectives. Scoured the landfill for any clues but ultimately found nothing.

10:58 It was during this time that more details emerged about the grandmother who sent Angelique and her siblings to live in Florida many years. Ago reportedly because she believed her oldest daughter was possessed. By demons, a belief that seemed to trickle down to her granddaughter in the end. Some things can never be fully explained or understood. All we can do is mourn the loss of a young life. And hope for justice to be served. The authorities were unmoved by the supernatural. Excuses put forth. For Amy's. Death. They saw it as a ploy to evade. Responsibility. A way to weasel out of a guilty. Verdict And let's face it, only a certain type of person could commit such an abhorrent act against a child. Those who thought.

11:42 They knew Angelique and Rosa now saw them in their true light, cold and unfeeling monsters, one neighbor said. We used to talk about the. Lord and current events I never would have guessed. That they were capable of such. Cruelty towards children. She added. I'll never understand why parents harm their flesh and blood when they are meant to be precious gifts from God. But it was. Too late for Amy. Her fate sealed by the two people she should. Have been able to trust the most. They were charged with murder in the second degree and depraved indifference murder, both heinous crimes that shook the community. To its core, the details.

12:23 Of Amy's death were plastered across newspapers and television screens, causing disgust and outrage among all who. Heard or read about it despite efforts by child. Services to uncover the. Truth it was. Clear that something had gone wrong in that household. But it was too late, no? Amount of punishment could bring back Amy. Or erase the. Horrors she endured in her final moments the only solace. Left was the hope for justice to be served. Angelique Burnie and Rosa Downing were sentenced to prison for 12 1/2 to 25 years for taking the life of innocent 5 year old Amy Michelle Burnie. But even as reality set in on University Ave., there was no forgetting what happened behind closed doors at 2769 University Ave.

13:14 It was a chilling reminder that evil can lurk inside anyone's home, even those you interact. With daily. And while headlines came and went, life on University of continued as if nothing had happened. But not for Amy. Her life was cut. Short at only five years, not enough time to finish school, discover her passions or form a bond with. Her supposed caregivers. No amount of love could have saved her from the. Fate that awaited her. Her existence was reduced to mere words on a page. Another heartbreaking chapter in a story we have. Heard all too. Often, and one can't help but wonder, did anyone shed tears for Amy when she took her last?

13:56 Breath or was? She another forgotten victim in a cruel world of monsters, hiding behind smiling. Faces if still. Among the living, she would have seen her 32nd birthday. Another casualty of a broken system, another life stolen by those who claim to. Care for her. Rest in eternal peace, dear Amy Michelle Burney, The world may have forgotten you, but your memory lives on. Thank you for tuning in to No Tears for Black Girls, now a part of the Alive Podcast Network, the first Black female owned and operated network dedicated to amplifying Black. Voices.

14:37 If you enjoyed. This episode, please show your support. By following us on the Alive podcast app, available on both iPhone and Android, you can also stay connected with us on social media and YouTube at No Tears for Black Girls or on X at No. Tears for BG. Remember to stay loved, stay blessed and stay safe until next time.