The tragic death of two siblings, just 8 and 4 years old, made headlines some time back after the pair were found hanging from a rafter in their basement in Albany Township, Pennsylvania. The story was almost too upsetting to read: Both kids were found hanging just three feet apart, from opposite ends of a plastic-covered dog lead, which was wrapped around the rafter.
Two dining room chairs were tipped over underneath them. For weeks, it remained unclear just what could have possibly led to the tragedy. However, a 911 recording was eventually released, suggesting it may have tied back to bullying, and disturbing details continued to surface over the course of several weeks.
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The recording, obtained by the 'Morning Call,' captures a conversation between a dispatcher and a fire captain on September 23, 2019.
As the fire captain rushed to the home on Route 143, the dispatcher relayed information provided by Lisa Snyder, the children’s mother, just moments before. Snyder had called 911 in a panic around 4:30 p.m., after discovering her two children — 8-year-old Conner and 4-year-old Brinley — hanging in the basement.
First responders were doing their best to prepare themselves before entering the home.
âAny indication from the caller if the scene is safe or how these children ended up there?â the fire captain reportedly asked.
âShe mentioned that the 8-year-old has been bullied and has made threats of doing this, but didnât want to go alone,” the dispatcher responded, referring to comments made by Snyder. “At this time, it should just be the mother and the two children on scene.â
Some thought this could explain the 8-year-old's apparent motive but also why the boy's little sister was found hanging beside him.
For weeks, these questions and more continued to plague investigators, as well as family and friends of the Snyders, who were shocked by the deaths. It was months before an official cause of death was named.
Although autopsies had been completed on both Conner and Brinley, at the time, Leigh County Coroner Eric Minnich shared that further forensic testing, a review of medical records, and the state police investigation still need to be completed before the deaths could be ruled a homicide, accident, or suicide.
The children were found unresponsive before medics rushed them by helicopter to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest.
Once there, both Conner and Brinley were placed on life support. When doctors realized nothing more could be done, however, the children were taken off life support September 26, dying just 14 minutes apart.
Meanwhile, police launched an exhaustive investigation into what could have led two young children to end their own lives in such a sudden, tragic way.
The Morning Call reported that police issued at least five search warrants, during which they seized cellphones, computers, and even an Xbox gaming console Conner is said to have used to access the internet.
Curiously, an October 2 search warrant was also issued for the family dog â a black husky-pit bull mix weighing 50 pounds that had apparently not been found. According to the Morning Call, investigators claimed that weighing the dog would somehow help in reconstructing what exactly happened September 23, but it was unclear as to why.
The small Pennsylvania community deeply mourned both children.
A group of 60 or so mourners gathered at an outdoor memorial to share words of remembrance, and release balloons into the sky in the siblings’ honor. Framed photos of the children were placed on a table, as well as Conner’s artwork, as family and friends fought back tears while trying to remember the children in life, rather than in death.
Also sitting framed on the table were two certificates, which revealed that the children became organ donors after they died.
“Through the compassionate decision to help others through organ, tissue or cornea donation [Conner and Brinley have] provided hope to the men, women and children who are in need of a life saving or life enhancing transplant,” the certificates read. However, the children’s mother was noticeably absent from the memorial.
She was said to have been cooperating with police, and according to People, she updated her Facebook page in the days after their death with a photo and message that read, âWords scar, rumors destroy, bullies kill.â
The case later took a shocking turn.
More than two months after Conner and Brinley died, authorities announced that their mother had been charged with first-degree murder, third-degree murder, tampering with evidence, and endangering the welfare of children, among other disturbing charges.
The case is ongoing. Snyder’s last court hearing was in April 2023, during which it was ordered that all of her mental health and medical records be turned over to the state for evaluation.
