8-Year-Old Boy’s Deathbed Last Words Lead To Justice After Being Tied To Tree And Burned

Note: We are revisiting a story that first gained attention in September 2015.

A Texas boy found justice years after being set on fire by an attacker, thanks to a deposition given on the attacker’s deathbed (see the video below).

The attacker was sentenced to prison, and the boy’s family won a landmark civil lawsuit awarding them $150 billion, the largest amount ever granted in U.S. legal history.

In a tragic event on his eighth birthday in 1998, a boy named Robbie Middleton was bound to a tree, drenched in gasoline, and set alight in a wooded area of Splendora, Texas, according to the Mirror.co.uk.

Despite the searing flames that ravaged his body, the young boy made his way home, eventually collapsing on the street, engulfed in fire.

When his mother found him, he was on the brink of death, with severe blisters covering his entire body and patches of skin hanging from his ankles. His injuries were so extensive that nearly every inch of his body was burned, leaving him without eyelids and only the soles of his feet untouched.

Although the medical professionals told the Middleton family that Robbie had little chance of surviving, he defied the odds through a grueling series of over 150 surgeries and numerous skin grafts, gradually growing stronger.

The boy, despite enduring severe trauma and disfigurement, was soon recognized for his unwavering positivity.

Middleton, who was known for his efforts to raise funds for burn victims and his playful interactions with the girls in his ward, often said, “The past is behind us. It’s time to move forward,” according to Mirro.co.uk.

He identified the attacker as a 13-year-old named Don Collins, but the court could not establish a clear motive and thus the boy was acquitted.

Middleton passed away in April 2011, and investigators concluded that his death was a result of homicide due to severe burns. Following this, his family was awarded $150 billion in damages.

They brought the case to court, and the jury eventually sentenced the 29-year-old defendant to 40 years in prison, according to Chron. Since the law in 1998 prevented 13-year-olds from being tried as adults, he was given the maximum possible sentence for his age at the time, allowing Middleton’s family to see justice served.

WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW: