CLEVELAND — A Cleveland woman, Bionca Ellis, has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the brutal murder of 3-year-old Julian Wood in a parking lot in June 2024.
Prosecutors said Ellis fatally stabbed Julian and injured his mother, Margot Wood, during a random attack on June 3, 2024, outside a Giant Eagle grocery store in North Olmsted. The attack shocked the community for its violence and apparent lack of motive.
During the trial, Ellis’s defense team argued that she suffered from severe schizophrenia and was unable to understand that her actions were wrong. However, jurors rejected the insanity defense, finding that Ellis knew what she was doing at the time of the crime.
Julian’s mother, Margot Wood, delivered an emotional statement in court, describing how the loss of her son continues to haunt her.
“That woman murdering my son replays in my head every single day,” she said. “The last thing I will ever hear from my son is his scream. And I can still see the tears in his eyes, and it haunts me every day. He was my baby boy.”
Julian’s father, Jared Wood, also shared his grief.
“Our home isn’t as loud and chaotic anymore, not the way it used to be,” he said. “There’s no one dressing up for Halloween as a dinosaur.”
Ellis showed little reaction as the judge handed down the life sentence. The court’s decision brings closure to a case that has devastated the Wood family and the Cleveland community.
