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A trans-identified male convicted of the grisly murder of an infant has been released on parole a full 30 years early. Jonathan Richardson, who now uses the name Autumn Cordellioné, was convicted in 2002 after his 11-month-old stepdaughter died in his care while her mother was at work. Having served less than half of his 55-year sentence, Richardson was quietly released in late December of 2025.
Without an official statement from the DOC, it is unclear why Richardson was released early. However, the decision may have been linked to an injunction granted in state court that required the IDOC to provide Richardson with taxpayer-funded cosmetic surgeries. Releasing Richardson early may have been the IDOC’s strategy to avoid paying for the court-ordered cosmetic enhancements.
As previously reported by Reduxx, in 2023, the ACLU of Indiana filed a legal complaint on behalf of Richardson claiming that the IDOC was subjecting him to “cruel and unusual punishment” by denying him the various plastic surgeries he had demanded.
[D]uring court proceedings Richardson stated that he had amended his demands to two surgeries, an orchiectomy and a penile inversion.
In addition to identifying as transgender, Richardson identifies as “Muslim,” and had launched a separate lawsuit against his prison’s chaplain for being denied a hijab.
Richardson had been serving a 55-year sentence for the murder of his 11-month-old stepdaughter after he had been left to care for the child while her mother was at work.
Richardson went to a neighbor’s home and asked them to call 911, claiming the child was unresponsive. The baby would later die at the hospital, with the cause of death determined to be asphyxiation by manual strangulation.
Richardson was booked awaiting a court hearing, and would later tell a prison official “all I know is I killed the little fucking bitch.” The following year, he was found guilty and sentenced to 55 years in prison.
Since being released, Richardson has created several social media profiles and has launched an OnlyFans, where he says he has been selling pornography of himself.
In other social media posts, the transgender baby killer describes being in a relationship with another man who claims to identify as transgender and was also convicted of killing an infant. In 2015, Cory Wallace set his house on fire in an attempt to cover up the fact that he had battered his 4-month old son to death. The following year, Wallace was convicted of charges including neglect of a dependent resulting in death and arson and sentenced to 72 years in prison.
Wallace, who is to spend the rest of his life in prison, has persisted in filing lawsuits against the IDOC. In July 2023 Wallace demanded a hefty payout of $500,000 as compensation for not having been granted state-funded cosmetic surgeries.
The mother of the baby girl Richardson strangled to death opposed his legal bid to obtain surgery. Linda Thomas submitted a brief statement expressing her concern that his identity may be concealed from her when he is released from prison.
Source: EXCLUSIVE: Transgender Baby Killer Released Into Indiana Community 30 Years Before The End of His 55-Year Sentence
