It was July 24, 2015, when 21-month-old Lonzie Barton was reported abducted from outside his Jacksonville apartment, prompting a massive and lengthy search. All the while his mother Lonna Lauramore Barton and her boyfriend William Ruben Ebron Jr. knew it was a ruse and that the blond-headed little boy was dead.
After Barton pleaded guilty to child neglect and lying to police and agreeing to testify against Ebron, he confessed and led them to the body under a tire in some woods on Jan. 11, 2016.
Ebron was sentenced to 20 years after pleading guilty to aggravated manslaughter, and Barton was sentenced to five years.
A day before Thanksgiving, Lonzie’s mother completed her sentence and was released from prison, according to the Florida Department of Corrections. Now 35, Barton is on parole. Ebron, 42, remains in the Okeechobee Correctional Institution with a scheduled release date of Sept. 28, 2037.
Barton’s attorneys have said she didn’t know what happened to Lonzie and that he was alive when she went to work as a dancer at Wacko’s on Emerson Street earlier in the day. But Ebron told prosecutors Lonzie drowned in the bathtub while the couple had sex in another room and Barton knew he was dead before leaving for work.
That’s when Ebron reported the toddler was abducted when his car was stolen with him inside. About 15 minutes later, the car was located less than a mile away with no one inside.
Barton had said Lonzie was alive and in the back seat of Ebron’s car when he dropped her off at work. Her attorney said she never changed her story about what happened, unlike Ebron who had multiple versions.
Assistant State Attorney Rich Mantei said during her plea that there isn’t enough evidence to say which one was telling the truth. But he said Lonzie clearly was abused before the day he died and that Barton never sought medical attention and allowed Ebron, a known drug dealer, into their lives.
The cause of death was ruled inconclusive because his body had been outside decomposing for nearly six months before it was found.
(This story has been updated with a new gallery.)
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: After serving time in toddler’s death, Lonzie Barton’s mom is released
Reporting by Scott Butler, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
