Authorities say the 5-year-old was found after a 90-minute search behind a Thompsonville home.
BEULAH, Mich. — A 5-year-old girl found injured in woods behind a Thompsonville home was moved from a Traverse City hospital to a Grand Rapids children’s hospital after an alleged assault, authorities said.
The child’s medical transfer is one of the clearest signs of the seriousness of the case against her mother, Christina Kay Crow, 40. Crow is charged with assault with intent to murder and first-degree child abuse. Her criminal case in Benzie County is now paused while officials arrange a forensic competency evaluation.
Emergency care began after deputies found the girl April 20 in a wooded area behind a home on Lincoln Avenue. The Benzie County Sheriff’s Office said deputies had first gone to the residence for a welfare check on Crow. Once there, investigators became worried about the whereabouts and well-being of Crow’s daughter. A search followed. About 90 minutes later, deputies found the child with serious injuries to her neck and face. She was taken to Munson Medical Center in Traverse City, then transferred to Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital in Grand Rapids for further treatment.
Authorities have not released the girl’s name, the details of her treatment or her current condition. They also have not said whether the transfer happened by ambulance or medical helicopter. The route from Traverse City to Grand Rapids moves a patient from northern Michigan emergency care to a specialized children’s hospital in one of the state’s larger medical centers. That sequence has become a major part of the public record because investigators have released little else about the child’s injuries. The sheriff’s office has said the investigation continues and that “no further details are being released.”
Crow was arrested at the scene after deputies found the child. She was taken to the Benzie County Jail and arraigned April 22 in Benzie County’s 85th District Court. A judge set her bond at $1 million cash or surety. The charges are both felonies and place the case among the county’s most serious pending criminal matters. Officials have not released an affidavit or a full police report describing the evidence behind the charges. The sheriff’s office also has not said whether investigators recovered a weapon, whether there were signs of a struggle or whether the child was able to give a statement.
The case has drawn attention beyond Benzie County because the alleged victim is a young child and because the search began with a welfare check rather than a reported attack. Deputies were sent to check on Crow, not to search for a missing child, according to the public timeline. The direction of the investigation changed after they arrived. What they saw or learned at the home has not been made public. Officials have not identified the person who requested the welfare check. They have not said whether deputies had prior contact with the household. Those gaps remain part of the active investigation.
The court schedule first pointed toward a May review of the evidence. A probable cause conference was set for May 7, and a preliminary examination was set for May 14. At a preliminary examination, a district judge can hear evidence and decide whether prosecutors have shown probable cause to move felony charges forward. That hearing did not take place. Court documents showed the May 14 date was canceled. The Benzie County Prosecutor’s Office said proceedings would resume after Crow receives a forensic competency evaluation. No date was given for the evaluation or for a rescheduled hearing.
A competency evaluation can slow a case at the beginning because it must be resolved before the ordinary hearing path continues. The review looks at a defendant’s present ability to understand court proceedings and work with counsel. It does not determine whether the allegations are true. It does not answer medical questions about the child’s injuries. It also does not remove the charges. Crow remains accused of both felonies, remains jailed on the $1 million bond and remains entitled to the presumption of innocence while the case waits for the review to be completed.
The setting of the search has remained plain in official descriptions: a residence, woods behind it and a child found after an hour and a half. Thompsonville is a small village in northwest Michigan, a place where homes can sit near wooded land and rural roads. The search area has not been described in detail. Officials have not said how far the child was from the house when she was found or who first spotted her. They also have not said whether neighbors, relatives or other agencies joined the search before the child was taken for medical care.
The next developments are expected to come from court rather than from investigators. If the competency evaluation is completed, the district court can set a new hearing or take other action based on the findings. If the case resumes, prosecutors may again seek a preliminary examination on the attempted murder and child abuse charges. For now, the public record remains limited to the welfare check, the search, the hospital transfer, the arrest, the bond and the canceled hearing.
As of Monday, no additional hearing date had been announced publicly. Crow remains in the Benzie County Jail while the case waits for the forensic competency process to finish.
Author note: Last updated May 18, 2026.