Alianna DeFreeze, a 14-year-old Cleveland, Ohio girl, was abducted, r*ped, tortured, and killed by Christopher Whitaker on January 26, 2017. DeFreeze was taken to an abandoned house where Whitaker r*ped her. Whitaker had a criminal history that included grand theft, burglary, aggravated robbery, felonious assault, and sexual assault. He killed her with a hammer, a screwdriver, a nut driver, a box cutter, a drill, and other tools that were left all over her body. He also beat and stabbed her to death. A city-wide search was conducted after DeFreeze, who went to school at E Prep & Village Prep Woodland Hills, was reported missing. Three days later, her body was found. The murder trial for Whitaker took place in February 2018. While prosecutors disagreed, claiming that Whitaker knew what he was doing, defense attorneys claimed that Whitaker's drug use made it more difficult for him to restrain his impulses and follow the law. On February 13th, 2018, Whitaker was found guilty by a jury. Later, the judge approved the jury's recommendation that Whitaker be given the death penalty. Whitaker is currently awaiting execution. DeFreeze's parents sued a number of people and organizations in 2019 on the grounds that the school's failure to inform them of DeFreeze's absence and its failure to keep an eye on abandoned properties contributed to her passing. DeFreeze's family was compensated $1 million in 2022. A law honoring DeFreeze was signed by Governor John Kasich in 2019 and mandates that schools notify parents of unexcused absences within two hours.