I Wish You Goodbye: The Christine Gelineau Story

In 2013, Christine Gelineau from Concord, Massachusetts pleaded guilty to first-degree assault against her 19-year-old son. Gelineau left her son with permanent damage and lifelong emotional pain after burning his penis and nipples with a lighter. She was sentenced to 9- to- 30-years in prison after pleading guilty to first-degree assault and witness tampering.

Son Reads Victim Impact Statement

The son whom she attacked helped put his mother behind bars. During the sentencing phase of the trial, the victim read a statement to his mother in court.

“What you did was unforgivable. You wanted me dead.” Gelineau sobbed from the attorney table in her orange, prison-issued jumpsuit as her son continued reading his statement.

“You beat me, starved me, almost chopped my penis off, threw my clothes away, wouldn’t let me bathe. You almost killed me by having me take three (antidepressants) and two muscle relaxers. Now that I know you’re a complete criminal and only wanted me dead so you could go back to your old life. You won’t be able to attend my graduation or see me go on to college, so I wish you goodbye. I hope you realize you have lost everything you ever had.”

The young victim remained composed as he read the statement. After returning to his seat, he broke down and cried, tightly hugging a family member at the trial to support him.

Gelineau Lies to Authorities

Gelineau repeatedly tortured the 19-year-old, then lied to authorities saying the wounds were self-inflicted. Two others were charged with the teen’s abuse and torture. Eventually, Gelineau comes clean, telling detectives she burned the tip of her son’s penis but did so only after the young boy threatened to have sex with her. She said she wore gloves because she thought her son was “dirty,” then held a lighter to his penis for several seconds. The boy screamed in agony.

The teen was transported to Concord Hospital where doctors determined he suffered from second-and third-degree burns to his penis. He also sustained injuries from Gelineau kneeing him in the face and striking him in the stomach. Police dismissed those charges as part of the plea bargain.

Two Other People Charged

One of the other two people charged along with Gelineau, 20-year-old Daniel Tyler Cantrell, told police a different story. This person said Gelineau burned her son’s penis after forcing him to eat human feces. She told her son to eat the feces or she would burn his penis. Despite complying with his mother’s demands and forcing feces down his throat, Gelineau burned his penis.

Cantrell admitted to his part in the incident, saying he helped carry out the abuse by kicking the teen, dragging him into a bedroom, tying him down, and walking away as Gelineau pulled down his pants.

Sentencing

Police say Cantrell and his cousin, 29-year-old Amy Nason pressured the teen to drink urine, eat worms, and drink dish soap. Cantrell abused the teen for several months before the abuse came to light. Among the horrific acts committed against the young man, he punched him in the face, pressed a cigarette onto his head, and strangled him with a scarf.

Cantrell and Nason were each charged with a litany of crimes related to the case. Nason pleaded guilty and received five years in prison under a plea agreement. Cantrell was sentenced to 18 to 60-years in prison.

The Motive

The abuse began when the mentally-challenged 19-year-old stopped receiving financial assistance from the government because he was not enrolled in school. A 12-year-old girl who witnessed Gelineau abusing the teen told her mother who then called the Division for Children, Youth, and Families in April 2014. The DCYF investigation led to the discovery of the abuse.