Robbie Middleton was just eight years old when he was bound to a tree and set on fire. He died of his injuries 12 years later, but not before identifying his attacker as a 13-year-old child who had sexually raped him two weeks previously.
Who was Robbie Middleton?
Robbie Middleton awoke excited on June 28, 1998, because it was his birthday. Robbie had spent some of his birthday money on fireworks and was looking forward to spending it on other items. Robbie decided to walk through the woods behind his home, visit a neighbor, and then pitch his tent, which he got as a birthday present.
His mother helped him set up the tent: “It was, without a doubt, one of the best days of his life. He adored his birthdays ” she remembered.
However, on that fateful afternoon, which should have been a day of laughter and happiness for young Robbie, he was brutally attacked in the woods while walking to his friend’s apartment. Robbie was bound to a tree with a rope before being doused in gasoline and set on fire.
Only when the rope caught fire and Robbie was rescued from the tree, despite the fact that he was on fire and couldn’t see anything, did he bravely escape home in a cloud of flames. Colleen, Robbie’s mother, discovered her son burned, blistered beyond recognition, and barely alive.
Robbie was taken to hospital with third-degree burns to 99% of his body, the only part of his body that remained intact was the sole of his feet. Robbie’s parents were told he would not survive, but miraculously he did.
Following the attack, Robbie identified a 13-year-old boy, Donald Collins, as the perpetrator. Donald Collins’ name did not surprise many because, despite being just 13 years old, he was identified as a local sex predator.
Donald lived near Middleton’s home, and Robbie’s mother warned him not to approach him, urging him to flee if he ever played a game by himself and saw Donald nearby.
What happened to Robbie Middleton?
Robbie has gone through over 200 surgeries, including a skin graft. Despite the pain and trauma, Robbie said, “The past is, well, the past. You must let go of it.” Robbie was upbeat and ready to put his painful experience behind him and move on. However, the fire severely burned Robbie’s organ, and he died in 2011 from cancer caused by the horrific burns.
Robbie’s assailant was apprehended and spent months in juvenile custody. However, he was released due to a lack of evidence, and the police discovered no reason for him to commit such a heinous crime.
While Robbie died, he ensured that his attacker got the ultimate punishment: 17 days before his death, Robbie made a 27-minute video in which he mentioned Donald Collins as his attacker once more. This time, however, Robbie shared more information: he described how Donald raped him in the woods two weeks before the assault, where he later set him on fire. A motive was eventually exposed after more than a decade of injustice.
Robbie described that he was walking alone in the woods when Donald suddenly appeared behind him and sprayed the gas in his face. “Donald grabbed me by the side and poured gas in my face, after that I don’t know exactly,” Robbie remembered. Robbie also explained how he got to his house when it was on fire. During the video, Robbie claimed to have heard an adult talk to Donald.
Donald Collins was eventually apprehended and charged with capital murder as an adult, despite the fact that he was 13 at the time of the crime. Tay Bond, Donald’s defense attorney, argued that moving the case to adult court would violate his client’s rights because the 1998 law prohibited him from being tried as an adult. Prosecutors, however, stated that the murder did not occur until 2011 and that minors as young as 10 years old could be tried as adults at that time.
During the trial, Robbie’s mother Colleen testified in court that her son was concerned in his final weeks that he would spend eternity in hell. Robbie was so concerned about the afterlife that he stopped watching cartoons for fear of seeing something sinful or racy. “I would tell him: You’re the best person I know; you’re not going to hell, Robert,” Collin recalled.
Robbie was terrified of going to hell, and he told Gordon Pranger of his fears. During Robbie’s rehabilitation, Gordon spoke with him and told him, “he had no choice, but I think he thought it was a sin to have sex before marriage.”
What happened to Donald Collins?
Many witnesses testified that Donald confessed to them that he was responsible for what happened to Robbie and said that Donald threatened to burn him if he ever spoke about it.
Robbie claimed in his video that he heard an adult voice when Donald was threatening him, and Heather Marie White, whose mother was married to Donald’s cousin, backed up his claim. Donald, according to Heather, admitted to her that “he and Rex hurt Robbie.” Donald’s uncle, “Rex,” has dismissed any of the charges leveled against him.
Rebecca Whitlock, a nurse who assisted Robbie in regaining strength after the attack at Galveston Hospital, testified that Robbie supported other burned children and worked to keep the hospital open after Hurricane Ike in 2008. Robbie was so successful that Rebecca advocated for the city of Galveston to declare June 28 as Robert Middleton Day.
Donald Collins now
Throughout the trial, Donald Collins kept his arrogant attitude in the courtroom, he paid no attention to the proceedings and occasionally read newspapers. At one point, he was overheard telling his lawyer, “The good news is that I’m going to get an education.”
At the trial, a man testified that Collins sexually abused him when he was a child. Donald Collins was sentenced to 40 years in prison by a jury in 2015. Donald was eventually imprisoned, thanks to Robbie.
The Middleton family had to wait 17 years for justice to be served. “Robbie will be overjoyed. He was terrified that Mr. Collins would hurt another boy, so he would be overjoyed.”
Now that you’ve read about Robbie Middleton, read about Jennifer Lee Daugherty was a 30-year-old American woman with the mental capacity of a child, and because of her mental disability, she trusted everybody.
