Twelve-year-old Mimi Torres of New Britain, Connecticut, was taken from this world in the most unimaginable way—killed by the very people who were supposed to love and protect her: her mother, aunt, and her mother’s boyfriend.

Her body was found over a year after her death. For more than twelve months, no one reported her missing. There were no welfare checks. No alarms raised. She had been erased in silence.

Many in our community believe this was not just the failure of individuals—it was the failure of a system. This includes me. 

In fact, I have personal experience with this broken system. As a teen, when I was homeschooled, a teacher knocked on my door one time to check-in on me. I didn't answer the door, the teacher left, and no one ever came around again. Now that I'm a father, I am disturbed by this lax oversight, which I believe played a key role in Mimi's death. 

As a father, I’ve been through DCF investigations that went nowhere — time, energy, and pain spent fighting for my name while my children needed stability. The courts made it harder through parental alienation, limiting my role even when I was trying to do right by my children.

Meanwhile, children across Connecticut are placed in homes with individuals who have violent or sexual offenses in their past. Parolees convicted of crimes against minors are allowed to live where children sleep. The system calls that “supervised reintegration.” I call it reckless endangerment.

DCF, schools, and mandated reporters were all blind to her suffering. Because Mimi was homeschooled, there was no teacher to notice her absence or her pain. Because the courts so often fail to do right by children, the people who loved her deeply, were kept away—robbed of the chance to save her life.

This petition calls for “Mimi’s Law”—a legislative change to ensure that no child disappears unnoticed again.

We demand laws that:

• Require periodic in-person welfare checks for homeschooled children.
• Mandate DCF accountability when repeated concerns go uninvestigated and make bodycams a requirement.
• Strengthen parental access and oversight rights to prevent one parent from cutting off the other or their family entirely.
• Prohibit convicted child abusers from paroling into or residing in any home with minor children, as happened in Mimi’s case.

Mimi’s life mattered. Her death must mean something.

Let her story move lawmakers to fix the cracks that let her fall through.

Sign this petition to stand with her and every child who deserves to be seen, heard, and safe.

Let’s make sure no child is ever forgotten again.

🕊️ For Mimi.