- Makallie Durham, then 23, had babysat her best girlfriend Justin Hurd’s two children several times
- So when Justin went away for work, she left her kids were in Makallie’s trusted care for a week
- But just days later, Justin received a distressing call that would turn her life upside down
Mum-of-two Justin Hurd, then 21, kissed her kids, Kristian, two, and *Lila, 11 months, goodbye as she headed out the door.
The siblings were the apple of Justin’s eye. She loved her two babies more than anything in the world.
It was September 2022 and Justin had asked her best friend Makallie, then 23, to babysit her kids for a week while she went away for work.
She’d looked after the kids several times before and Justin trusted her babies were in safe hands.
The pair were so close, in fact, that Justin referred to her bestie as the kids’ aunt, and the children lovingly called her ‘TiTi’.
”I would never let anything happen,’ Makallie promised.’
Still, Justin knew that two young kids could be a handful, so she suggested to Makallie that she could drop her kids at her mum Christine’s house if she needed a break.
‘You know I love your kids. I would never let anything happen,’ Makallie promised.
Justin could relax and focus on work.
But seven days later, Makallie called her boyfriend, a truckie, and told him that Kristian was unconscious.
Concerned, Makallie’s boyfriend called emergency services.
‘He was rushed to hospital in a critical state.’
As authorities raced over to the boyfriend’s residence, where Makallie and the kids had been staying, it was confirmed that sweet Kristian was unresponsive.
He was rushed to hospital in a critical state.
Next, police phoned Justin, urging her to come straight to hospital, but spared her the details of what they’d found.
‘They were trying to keep me calm, calm enough to get to my kid,’ Justin later told the Daily Mail.
It wasn’t until she arrived that she realised just what a dire situation her boy was in.
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Her baby had been savagely beaten, was covered with bruises and marks, and was fighting for his life.
Justin prayed he would recover, but she knew in her heart her boy would never regain consciousness.
And her nightmare was far from over.
Heartbreakingly, little Lila had also suffered horrific injuries, including bruising to her face, abdomen and chest. Thankfully the little girl was responsive.
But Justin’s mind whirled.
What on earth could have happened to cause such horrific injuries? And where was Makallie?
‘Had Justin’s best friend just confessed to hurting her children?’
She needed her best friend now more than ever.
Then Justin received a text that brought her world crashing down.
It was from Makallie, who claimed she was being taken to jail by police. She was begging for help so she could be spared prison time.
Distraught, Justin couldn’t believe what she was reading. Had her best friend just confessed to hurting her children?
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She’d trusted her to keep them safe. Surely her bestie couldn’t be capable of such abhorrent violence.
Justin fired back.
You better hope they take you before I get there, she furiously typed.
Devastatingly, despite doctors’ best efforts, Kristian succumbed to his injuries two days later.
Justin’s little Snickerdoodle, as she affectionately called him, was gone.
That same day, their babysitter, Makallie Elizabeth Durham, was arrested for his death and Lila’s injuries.
She was accused of inflicting multiple beatings on Kristian and his little sister over a four-day period. Evidence from Durham’s boyfriend’s home surveillance footage helped prove when the violence took place.
Devastated, Justin grappled with disbelief at her best friend’s cruel actions which had robbed her of her beautiful son.
‘You couldn’t pay me at the time to believe she was… capable of thinking or doing anything of that nature,’ Justin told the Daily Mail.
Finally, in December 2024, Durham pleaded guilty to capital murder and four counts of felonious child abuse.
‘Justin takes comfort in the special memories she has of her boy.’
Makallie Elizabeth Durham, of Corinth, US, then 25, was sentenced by Circuit Court Judge Michael P Mills Jr to life in prison, plus 40 years for capital murder. She will not be eligible for parole.
Justin took to Facebook to share her feelings.
You are finally getting the justice you deserve baby although I’m human I’ll be honest, nothing will ever be enough for your life!
In a twist of fate, just three days after Kristian’s funeral, Justin learned she was pregnant with her third child, a daughter. She’s since also welcomed another son.
While her youngest two will never get the chance to meet their big brother, Justin told the Daily Mail that Lila remembers her brother ‘to a certain extent’.
While the pain of losing a child will never leave Justin, she takes comfort in the special memories she has of her boy.
‘He was just such a loving kid. He was the best big brother,’ she said.
