WAYCROSS, Ga. — A Waycross family is desperately searching for answers after their 15-year-old son was seriously injured at a party in 2019. How it happened and who is responsible has been a topic of debate in the small Georgia town.
Five years ago, Joseph Manning, then 15, snuck out of his parents' home to attend a New Year's Eve party down the road. His mother, Tatum Thrift Walker, thought he was in his bedroom.
"We had no idea he snuck out," Walker said.
At that party, something happened that would change the family's life forever. According to witnesses, Manning fell off the top of a two-story barn around midnight on Jan. 1, 2019. No one called for help until almost 14 hours later.
"He was laying at the bottom of the barn on an old, dirty twin mattress. They all sat there and was watching my son die. They changed his clothes, moved him, and still hadn't called 911," Walker explained.
First Coast News requested the police report from the Ware County Sheriff's Office.
In the report, it says everyone attending the party at the barn was drinking and playing beer pong. Witnesses say Joseph arrived at the party and "seemed drunk" and passed out on an air mattress in the hay loft at 11:30 p.m.
Witnesses say they found him lying motionless on the ground, at the bottom of the barn, about 30 minutes later.
"I think what's most difficult about the entire incident, regardless of your idea or your opinion as far as what happened, is that Joseph was 15 years old," Jason Secrist said.
Secrist is a special agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. He was the supervisor on the case.
"We interviewed everybody that was at the party and the stories were relatively consistent," Secrist added.
But, that's where this story takes a turn and Joseph's mother disagrees.
"It's been the worst investigation I've ever seen," Walker stated.
Walker doesn't believe her son fell out of the barn, nor does she believe those witnesses were telling the truth to investigators.
"Kids had come forward to us and said he was hit in the head with a shovel. But, when they would talk to the GBI, they wouldn't say nothing. They were scared," Walker said.
According to Walker, another boy was jealous that Joseph was talking to his girlfriend and purposely beat him at the party.
"I knew kind of about him. Not trying to be mean, but he was somebody I wouldn't allow my son to hang around with. He was a troublemaker," Walker added.
One arrest was made in this case. Ginger Oxford, the mother of one of the teenagers who was throwing the party, was charged with cruelty to children for failing to seek medical attention for Joseph.
A trial was held in 2023. She pleaded guilty and is currently serving time in prison. Oxford isn't scheduled to be released until 2026.
"At the trial, the GBI is talking. He's giving his testimony about what happened. Joseph goes ... that's a lie! I mean the whole courtroom got silent. He grabs my hand and starts squeezing it. He looks at my me and he goes 'Momma I want to talk now,'" Walker explained.
Joseph told investigators he was actually hit in the head with a pistol by that boy that Walker mentioned.
"We took some time and tried to hear Joseph and what he had to say. He did provide a statement and he could not remember everything," Secrist responded.
Since 2019, Joseph has spent time in various medical facilities as he recovers from his injuries. He's now blind and in a wheelchair. His family has been on the sidelines fighting for him.
"I won't rest until something is done. They all think they got away with it. They didn't get away with it. God knows what happened," Walker said.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation considers this a closed case. But, Secrist says they will consider any new credible information that is provided to them. He says investigators looked at medical records and spoke with numerous witnesses and stands by their conclusion that Joseph fell from the barn and there was no foul play.
Walker disagrees and believes there are more witnesses out there who haven't spoken to the GBI.