Savanna LeFever appears before Outagamie County court via Zoom, November 25, 2025. (Outagamie Co. court/Zoom)
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – A preliminary hearing will be held Dec. 19 for Savanna LeFever, one of four people charged with child neglect after a 14-year-old was hospitalized in August weighing just 35 pounds.
LeFever, 29, appeared in court Tuesday with an attorney for the first time, as Timothy Hogan will represent her.
Three other people are also charged:
- Walter Goodman, the victim’s father, has a preliminary hearing Jan. 5.
- Melissa Goodman, Goodman’s wife but not the victim’s mother, has a status conference Dec. 11. LeFever is her daughter.
- Kayla Stemler, LeFever’s partner, has a preliminary hearing Dec. 2.
The victim’s relatives say the girl is now staying with family on her mother’s side, and is continuing to recover.
The criminal complaint says that Walter Goodman called 911 in August to report his daughter was lethargic, moaning, and almost comatose.
According to the criminal complaint, the first officer on scene at the Hattie Lane home said the girl looked to be only 6 to 8 years old.
Hospital employees said she weighed less than 40 pounds.
The last time she saw a medical provider was approximately five years before this incident came to light,” Assistant District Attorney Julie DuQuaine said at a previous court hearing. “She was very, very close to death — 35 pounds at 14 years old.”
The complaint said Walter Goodman told authorities his daughter didn’t like to eat or sleep. He claimed they’d offer her meals, but she wouldn’t eat.
Hospital employees said the teen suffered from severe malnutrition. She had signs of multiorgan dysfunction, including respiratory failure, cardiac dysfunction, severe acute hepatitis and pancreatitis, among other issues.
The criminal complaint said while the girl was hospitalized, one of the nurses explained to the victim she would get three meals a day. The nurse noted the girl’s “eyes lit up as she started listing off all the options of food she could have over the course of her hospitalization.”
The girl then said her dad would be so mad because he doesn’t like when she eats so much.
The criminal complaint also included a litany of text messages by the defendants, calling the victim a “dummy” and “stupid.”
Comments