Mother Charged with Murder of Infant Son 55 Years After His Death

Alice Bunch Idlett, 75, faces second-degree murder charges after forensic evidence and incriminating letters revealed her role in the 1970 death of her 16-month-old son.

• The 1970 death of Earl D. Bunch III, initially attributed to a crib fall, was ruled a homicide after a forensic autopsy conducted in 2022.
• Alice Bunch Idlett, the child's mother, was arrested on March 27, 2025, and charged with second-degree murder based on new evidence.
• Court documents revealed letters from Idlett in 1969 expressing animosity toward her son, including wishing for his death.
• Medical records from 1970 showed the child suffered multiple skull fractures, a fractured shoulder, and other injuries inconsistent with a fall.
• Idlett is currently being held on a $950,000 bond as the case garners attention for its use of modern forensic techniques to solve a decades-old crime.

3 Articles

New York Post People The Independent