05/05/2026
🌻 KANSAS CHILD SPOTLIGHT 🔦
Aurora Exon was just 2 years old when her life was taken in January 2021.
Aurora, lived in Topeka with her father, Jeffrey James Exon. She had been seen by medical providers multiple times throughout her life. Even as concerns about her weight were raised, she was still described as a happy, active child.
By early 2021, that changed.
When authorities arrived at the home, Aurora was already gone.
The autopsy told the story her small body could not. She was severely malnourished and dehydrated. There was no food in her system. The cause of death was starvation—deprivation of basic care—and it was ruled a homicide.
In the final days of her life, evidence showed she grew weaker and weaker. She depended on someone to feed her, to care for her… and that care never came.
A jury found Exon guilty of first-degree felony murder, along with other charges tied to her neglect. The Kansas Supreme Court later upheld those convictions.
Aurora did not die from a sudden act.
She died from being forgotten.
From being left without the most basic human needs—food, water, care.
She was only two years old.
🕯️ Aurora Exon mattered.
🕯️ She deserved safety.
🕯️ She deserved to be cared for.
🕯️ She deserved to grow up.
And her story is not over. Because neglect is not always loud. Sometimes it is quiet, hidden, and slow—and just as deadly.