Mom kills 6-year-old during exorcism, leaves body for 12 days, Florida cops say

When a 6-year-old boy hadn’t been to school in weeks, deputies went to his home for a welfare check and found out his mother had killed him during an exorcism, Florida authorities said.

Rhonda Paulynice, 41, now is charged with second-degree murder, failure to report a death and altering a body, St. Lucie County Sheriff Richard Del Toro announced May 30.

School resource deputies at Samuel S. Gaines Academy requested a welfare check May 30 after school officials flagged that Ra’myl Pierre had been absent from school for 16 days, Del Toro said during a news conference.

Deputies arrived at his Fort Pierce home and spoke with Paulynice, who brought deputies inside and into the child’s bedroom, where they found the boy dead, according to the sheriff.

Investigators believe Paulynice killed her son May 18 and left his body in his bedroom for 12 days.

“She believed she was being told by God to basically exorcise demons out of the child’s body,” Del Toro said. “And when the child had stopped moving and had basically passed away at that point, she felt the child had been released of those demons and was waiting for him to basically come back.”

First responders visited the house the day before the child’s death for a medical issue the mother was having, according to the sheriff.

Medical personnel could not immediately confirm the boy’s cause of death.

“From what I understand this kid just lit the room up and was just loved by everybody,” Del Toro said.

St. Lucie Public Schools confirmed “the tragic passing” of one of its students and shared that grief support services would be available.

“Our hearts are with the student’s family, friends, classmates and all who loved and cared for him during this incredibly difficult time,” the district said in a statement.

Fort Pierce is about a 70-mile drive north from West Palm Beach.

This story was originally published June 2, 2025 at 11:40 AM with the headline "Mom kills 6-year-old during exorcism, leaves body for 12 days, Florida cops say."