A grand jury indicted Hershall’s mother, Ashley Johnson, and her boyfriend, Michael Kendrick, in connection to his disappearance.
Johnson, 39, is facing one count of obstructing justice, and Kendrick was charged with two counts of tampering with evidence and three counts of gross abuse of a corpse in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court.
Hershall was reported missing early on July 12. Initially Kendrick said a man punched him and took the boy, according to Montgomery County Regional Dispatch Records.
During the investigation, Dayton police determined Hershall hadn’t been kidnapped and may have been missing for weeks.
Johnson told police during an interview that Hershall was dead, according to Dayton Municipal Court records.
He reportedly died in late May while she was in hospital.
“During an interview with Michael, he stated that while drinking and in an argument over the phone, he punched (the boy) in the head twice,” an affidavit read. “He then pushed him down, causing him to bounce off the floor and striking other parts of his body.”
Kendrick said Hershall died the next day, according to court records.
He allegedly put the boy’s body in a deep freezer and then used a suitcase to bring Hershall to a grassy field.
A few weeks later, Kendrick returned and put the bones in a bag and left them on McClure Street near the bridge over U.S. 35.
He told police where the remains were, according to court records.
Kendrick and Johnson’s cases are pending in common pleas court.
They have a competency hearing scheduled for Nov. 13.
Earlier this month law firm Wright & Schulte filed a civil lawsuit on behalf of Hershall’s estate accusing Montgomery County and Clark County officials and agencies of negligence.
The lawsuit claims there were numerous signs Hershall was in danger in the months leading up to his death.
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