A 32-year-old mother in Ohio faces decades in prison for allegedly beating and strangling her 6-year-old daughter for weeks before killing the child in a horrific manner. Ashley Fagan was arrested and charged with one count of murder, involuntary manslaughter, and obstructing justice in connection with the death of young Eva Bretz, according to records.
Fagan is also charged with two counts of permitting child abuse and endangering children in relation to a 1-year-old child who suffered “serious physical harm” between November and December 2023.
On April 13, 2025, officers from the Columbus Division of Police responded to a 911 call at a home in Columbus, Ohio’s 4000 block of Migration Lane, according to CBS affiliate WBNS. When first responders arrived at the scene, they found Eva and immediately began life-saving procedures.
Eva was transported to Nationwide Children’s Hospital and admitted in critical condition. According to the report, the child had internal injuries, including a severed liver, as well as external injuries, such as ligature marks around her neck, which doctors considered life-threatening.
Unfortunately, Eva died from her injuries about six hours after being admitted to the hospital. The Franklin County Coroner’s Office conducted an autopsy and determined that Eva’s death was a homicide.
A copy of the coroner’s report obtained by The Columbus Dispatch revealed additional details about Eva’s death, including the conclusion that the 6-year-old was likely subjected to severe physical abuse for several weeks or even months before dying. Tests revealed that the child had fentanyl in her system and had been sexually assaulted before her death.
In addition to the severed liver, Eva suffered blunt force trauma to her abdomen. She had multiple fractures in her ribs and pelvis that were in various stages of healing, police said, indicating ongoing abuse.
According to the Dispatch, Fagan was arrested after she and her boyfriend, Blake Hutchinson, gave conflicting accounts of how Eva died. Hutchinson was also charged in Eva’s death, but he committed suicide shortly before authorities arrested him, according to the Kansas City Star.
The Dispatch obtained a copy of the indictment, which alleges that Eva’s injuries were the “proximate result of permitting the child to be abused, tortured, administered corporal punishment or other physical disciplinary measure, or physically restrained in a cruel manner or for a prolonged period.”
