‘A prolonged death camp’: Utah woman sentenced for torture and murder of 12-year-old stepson

OGDEN — In a case that has horrified a community in West Haven, a woman was sentenced after pleading guilty to multiple charges related to the prolonged abuse, torture, and murder of her 12-year-old stepson, Gavin Peterson.

After entering a guilty plea, Nichole Lea Scott, 50, was sentenced by 2nd District Court Judge Camille Neider on Monday to serve the following sentences consecutively:

• 15 years to life in prison for first-degree murder,
• two sentences of one to 15 years for second-degree aggravated child abuse charges,
• two sentences of one to 15 years for second-degree obstruction of justice charges,
• up to five years for third-degree child endangerment,
• and up to 364 days for the possession or use of a controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor.

Scott was also issued a sentence of one to 15 years for the aggravated child abuse of Gavin’s sister.

In exchange for her plea and agreement to consecutive prison sentences, prosecutors did not pursue an aggravated murder charge.

At the end of the sentencing hearing, Neider approved a protective order barring her from seeing or speaking to her biological child, Gavin’s half-brother, as well as Gavin’s father, brother, and his other siblings.

Neider also concluded the sentence by stating she would converse with the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole to advise that Scott should never be released, in her opinion.

“Sometimes people sit in that chair and I want to, as they go off to prison, say, ‘Do your best, because at some point you’re going to get out,’ — a glimmer of hope, a ray of hope, something for you to hold onto as you’ll be going to prison,” she said. “Truthfully, I am not going to be that ray of hope for you. I don’t know that you will get out, and frankly, I hope that you don’t get out.”

Gavin’s father and brother both recently pleaded guilty in the case, and his father, Shane Peterson, 47, was given the maximum sentence possible for his conviction. Gavin’s brother, Tyler Peterson, 22, was found to suffer from multiple psychological disorders and his sentencing was postponed until further evaluation is completed.

According to the memorandum, Gavin was subjected to years of escalating abuse that included starvation, isolation, and physical torture. He was confined to a small, bare room marked with blue tape, monitored by surveillance cameras, and denied basic human dignity.

Prosecutors wrote that, unlike any of the other rooms in the home, Gavin’s had no carpet — it was a painted plywood subfloor with “blue tape marking out a box of less than three feet long and wide.”

Throughout the home, there were photographs of another child hung — as well as notes “reflecting (the child’s) school progress and accolades declaring how much (the child) was loved.” Meanwhile, “there was not one single photograph, note, or school assignment of Gavin. It was as if he did not exist in the home,” prosecutors wrote.

Phone records told a similar story, showing family vacations and fun outings, “none of which included Gavin.”

“The only images or videos of Gavin were of him locked in the cell, laying in a dirty diaper, covered in feces and wounds,” the memorandum reads. “The only text messages regarding Gavin were of how much she hated him, how terrible he was, and the torture she and the codefendants enjoyed putting him through.”

At the time of his death, Gavin was severely malnourished, dehydrated, and wounded all over his body.

“Although Nichole initially lied to the police regarding the events of that day, further investigation revealed that she delayed any attempt to reach out for life-saving measures while she and Tyler hid surveillance cameras, removed other items from the room and removed and replaced the door knob in an effort to mislead the police and hide the abuse and isolation that had been happening in the home,” the memorandum states. “During the twenty-one minutes between the first text message to Shane that Gavin was not breathing and the ultimate call to 911, she called and spoke with Shane for 11 minutes and 17 seconds.”

Related:  Gavin Peterson’s death put DCFS under a microscope. How did lawmakers respond?

Gavin’s cause of death was ruled as complications from sepsis, with contributing factors including pneumonia, dehydration, and untreated infections. His manner of death was ruled a homicide.

“Gavin had many wounds on his body at the time of his death, including severe sores on his lower back, upper back, hips, shoulders, elbows and knees. He also had a number of perfectly round injuries inflicted by an unknown mechanism and multiple contusions and abrasions across his entire body which in no way could have gone unnoticed,” prosecutors wrote in the memorandum.

Abuse of other children close to Gavin

The abuse extended beyond Gavin. His sister and his half-brother were also victims. His sister endured years of physical and emotional abuse, including being zip-tied to furniture, denied food and sleep, and physically assaulted.

Gavin’s half-brother, while not physically abused to the same extent, was exposed to controlled substances and witnessed the abuse of his siblings, which experts say will likely have long-term psychological effects.

Related:  Community members press DCFS for answers on abuse death of Gavin Peterson

“With (Gavin’s brother) witnessing the disparate treatment and prolonged abuse of his half-siblings — that abuse has had a profound impact on his young mind,” prosecutors stated.

A report on Gavin’s brother was written for prosecutors by Dr. Antoinette Laskey.

“When these things happen, the surviving children learn to scapegoat, victim blame and lack empathy for suffering,” she wrote.

Scott’s lack of remorse

In a text exchange, in May of 2023, with co-defendant Shane Peterson, she expressed frustration after a school nurse reported Gavin’s infected fingers: “He does this (expletive) for attention and I (expletive) hate it and it makes me hate him more and more!”

“Gavin was 11 years old at the time of these messages. This was within a month of Nichole and Shane removing Gavin from the public eye for the last time,” prosecutors wrote. “The school personnel were concerned for Gavin’s health and with the clear malnutrition that they were seeing, they made reports to DCFS. To stop the reports from school personnel, Shane and Nichole took Gavin out of school in May of 2023, effectively isolating him from anyone who could intervene.”

In conversations with her son and co-defendants, Scott frequently referred to Gavin using slurs and dehumanizing language. In one chilling exchange with Gavin’s step-brother, she responded to a report that Gavin was knocking on the door:

“He can (expletive) off,” she wrote. In another, she asked, “Can you hear (expletive) in the room?” and later added, “That’s good,” when told he was silent.

Scott also justified locking Gavin in his room for taking a can of tonic water, texting, “And this is why the door is locked to the room cuz he’s sneaky.”

Despite multiple red flags raised by school staff, bus drivers, and concerned relatives, Gavin was withdrawn from school in May 2023, effectively cutting him off from any outside help. His final months were spent in complete isolation.

“As with all homicide cases, there are secondary victims impacted by the death of Gavin. In this case, the secondary victims include the biological mother of Gavin, who tried to get Gavin back into her custody,” prosecutors wrote. “She blames herself, despite the fact that she had no ability to stop the abuse where Shane refused to allow her to even see Gavin since 2019.”

On Monday, prosecutors urged the court to impose the maximum sentence, citing the extreme cruelty of the offenses, the number of victims, and Scott’s continued lack of remorse.

“Nichole still maintains her lies, shifting the responsibility to anyone but herself and refusing to acknowledge the damage she has caused,” prosecutors wrote.

“Each of these child victims were supposed to be nurtured in a loving home,” the memorandum states. “Instead, the milieu over which Shane and Nichole presided was nothing short of a prolonged death camp for Gavin.”

---

This is a developing story. It may be updated.

---

Child abuse resources:

• Utah Domestic Violence Coalition operates a confidential statewide, 24-hour domestic abuse hotline at 1-800-897-LINK (5465). Resources are also available online: udvc.org. The statewide child abuse and neglect hotline is 1-855-323-DCFS (3237).

Help with Children

Those who feel stressed out with a child, who need a break or who feel like they need counseling or training can reach out to one of the following agencies:

• The Family Support Center has 15 locations throughout the state and offers a free crisis nursery for parents who have to keep appointments or who are stressed out. They also offer counseling and family mentoring. Call 801-955-9110 or visit familysupportcenter.org/contact.php for more information.
• Prevent Child Abuse Utah provides home visiting in Weber, Davis, and Box Elder counties. Parent Educators provide support, education, and activities for families with young children. Their statewide education team offers diverse trainings on protective factors, digital safety, bullying, and child sex trafficking. They are available for in-person or virtual trainings and offer free online courses for the community at pcautah.org.
• The Office of Home Visiting works with local agencies to provide home visits to pregnant women and young families who would like to know more about being parents. Home visitors are trained and can provide information about breastfeeding, developmental milestones, toilet training, nutrition, mental health, home safety, child development, and much more. Find out more at homevisiting.utah.gov.
• The Safe Haven law allows birth parents in Utah to safely and anonymously give up custody of their newborn child at any hospital in the state, with no legal consequences and no questions asked. The child’s mother can drop off the child, or the mother can ask someone else to do it for her. The newborns should be dropped off at hospitals that are open 24 hours a day. Newborns given up in this manner will be cared for by the hospital staff, and the Utah Division of Child and Family Services will find a home for the child. For more information, visit utahsafehaven.org or call the 24-hour hotline at 866-458-0058.

CSAM Prevention Resources and Victim Recovery: 

• The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children provides support to children who are victims of child sexual exploitation through emotional peer support for families, content removal of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and help getting connected to therapists and attorneys. The NCMEC also provides a CyberTipline where CSAM can be reported. Visit https://www.missingkids.org/gethelpnow/csam-resources for more information. 
• The Utah Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force hosts a hub of resources for parents and offers local help to cases involving child sexual exploitation. 
• RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) provides a guide of safety measures to take in order to prevent children from being targeted in CSAM cases. 
• Thorn nonprofit organization creates products and programs that combat child sexual abuse at scale. It provides resources for families to help them identify the possible ways children can be exploited online, giving them proper terminology and statistics to keep them educated. For more information, visit https://www.thorn.org/research/child-sexual-abuse-material-csam/ 

Utah Domestic Violence Coalition operates a confidential statewide, 24-hour domestic abuse hotline at 1-800-897-LINK (5465). Resources are also available online: udvc.org. The statewide child abuse and neglect hotline is 1-855-323-DCFS (3237).