Goodnight Sugar Babes; Vera Jo Reigle's Horrific Story

On March 26, 2011, Vera Jo Reigle, 24, was brutally killed. In Findlay, Ohio, she was assaulted and stabbed before being placed on the railway tracks, where she died. Because of her disability, Vera's brain functioned at the level of an eight-year-old.

Vera had a terrible background and had been used by everyone she encountered her whole life. When she was only 11, her father started sexually assaulting her. Although her father was sentenced to 20 years in jail, she could not see the bright side of life since she was a severely mentally ill 11-year-old.

As time went on, the mother and family became estranged. Even though she was well recognized to have been intellectually disabled, she was regarded as an eight-year-old by professionals. Because of her professors and unique courses, she was able to graduate from high school. After a few months, she was declared disabled and started collecting government benefits.

After meeting Zachary Brooks, only 13 then, Vera started a relationship with him when she was 19. Despite the age gap, Zackary Brooks and his family moved in next door to Vera and her family. As a result, there was never a typical day in her life.

In addition to being the matriarch of the Brooks family, Zachary's mother, Cheri Brooks, was also a criminal boss. As a result of claims that Cheri sexually abused her children, the state has taken five out of her nine children and put them in foster care.

Even a member of Cheri's family claimed to have seen her do the most horrible deed to her baby children when she was alone. Public denial of these accusations from Cheri isn't forthcoming from her.

After her children were taken away, she and her husband accepted more children into their house. This group of youngsters, all boys, had a long history of criminal activity in the Findlay, Ohio, region. Assault, burglary, and drug trafficking were just some of the crimes committed by the Brooks family. Cheri's youngest child, Zachary, was born.

Cheri's father was accused of sexually abusing her as a youngster, and she developed an infatuation with infant girls. Attempts to have a second child failed time and time again after her first child was taken into protective custody and put in foster care. When Vera moved in, Cheri, on the other hand, urged the couple to have a family.
If Vera fell pregnant, Cheri told the couple that she would raise the kid as her own and that she would not allow Vera to have any contact with her child.
While Zachary was only 16 years old, Vera fell pregnant and gave birth to a baby daughter at 22. Regularly, she was beaten, assaulted, and sexually attacked by numerous Brooks guys while living in the home.
In two years, the Brooks residence was the site of 10 calls to the police due to charges of domestic abuse. Vera had been interrogated multiple times by the police. Still, she refused to say anything unpleasant about the Brooks family because she feared the pressure and intimidation she was under. Vera was ruled capable of making her own choices at 22 despite her impaired mental ability and apparent symptoms of abuse.
It was an ancient midwifery method to give Vera castor oil to induce early labour. Still, Cheri couldn't wait any longer and forced Vera to swallow three full bottles of castor oil to make her go into labour.

When Vera's baby girl was born, her mother was barred from interacting with the child, much less holding her.
According to the police and social workers, the residence was filthy. The Brooks family kept one dog and a pig in their home to keep their pets, which they also used as a latrine. This was not a place for a baby since the home seemed to be abandoned. But Zachary's legal rights to his daughter meant that Vera's legal guardian, Cheri, was not immediately removed from the custody of Vera's kid.

Cheri and her son concocted a plan in March 2011 to get rid of Vera so their daughter could be Cheri's for the rest of her days and never have to leave. Nicole Peters, the 17-year-old girlfriend of mistreated and sexually assaulted Vera's boyfriend, Daniel Bixler, was given the duty of killing Vera by Zachary.

At 8 p.m. on March 26, Bixler, Peters, and Zachary left home; Vera first refused but was forced to join them. They ultimately got around to killing Vera and celebrating her death at a friend's place.

Bixler confessed to the murder of Vera with the help of his girlfriend, Nicole Peters. Bixler stabbed her to death as they led her to the train lines.
Vera Jo Reigle's murderer, Daniel Bixler, received a 40-year jail term plus life without the possibility of parole. He is eligible for release after 40 years in prison. However, Peters has been sentenced to 23 years in prison for her role in the case.
In 2015, Cheri was found guilty of cocaine trafficking and sentenced to 40 months in jail. By lying to authorities about Vera's murder, Zachary Brooks was found guilty of obstruction of justice. His four-year sentence was handed out in 2011.
"I love you, Willadsen. You are a good baby girl to us. I'm glad to be your mommy, and I'm glad I had you on November 4 at 4:16 a.m. Six pounds, two ounces, and 19 inches long. "Mommy loves you,"
read by Alex Treece, prosecuting attorney.
A few months after her mother's death, Vera's daughter was taken from the Brooks household and put in a loving adoptive family of her own.