Authorities say exams of other children found BBs, healing fractures and signs of long-term harm.
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — The death of 9-year-old Ruger Boude has led to murder and child neglect charges against his mother and her boyfriend, along with a wider review of children who lived in the same home.
Police said the case began as a hospital response but soon expanded into a household investigation. Alicia Reanne Busey, 38, and Steven Dewayne Duty, 43, were charged after Ruger died from injuries police said were consistent with physical abuse. Reports citing court records say each defendant faces one count of second-degree murder and three counts of felony child neglect. Authorities have said the investigation remains active, and the accusations have not yet been proven in court.
The surviving children became a major part of the case after Ruger’s death. Reports based on a probable cause affidavit said Busey had three other children in the home, including a 10-month-old daughter and two 11-year-old sons. The two boys were examined at the OU Safe Clinic and took part in forensic interviews. Doctors reportedly found BB pellets embedded in their bodies and several healing fractures in their arms and legs. The findings were described as signs of long-term abuse, not a single recent injury.
One of the older boys had to be hospitalized for a serious infection on his scalp, according to reports on the affidavit. The infection was tied to an allegation that he had been struck in the head with a toolbox by a sibling. The public record does not say who first noticed that infection, how long it went untreated or whether any adult sought care before investigators stepped in. Police also reviewed medical and educational records while building the neglect part of the case, but many details about the children’s daily living conditions remain unknown.
Ruger entered the medical system late on April 8. Police said officers were called to an area hospital at about 10:39 p.m. after staff saw injuries that appeared consistent with physical abuse. Reports said Busey brought him first to St. Anthony’s Healthplex East. Medical staff found him unresponsive, with dilated pupils and a collapsed left lung. He was then rushed to OU Medical Center. During emergency surgery, doctors found a massive brain bleed. Oklahoma City police said he died April 10. His obituary lists April 11 as the date of death.
Investigators said Busey initially gave a different explanation for the injuries. She allegedly told police that Ruger had been hurt while fighting with an older brother. Medical findings later described in reports pointed to injuries across the body and at different stages of healing. An autopsy found a fractured left wrist, bruises and BB pellets lodged in soft tissue, including one in his right kidney. Police have not publicly identified the full cause of each injury, the length of time the BBs had been in the children’s bodies or the exact sequence of events before Ruger was taken to the hospital.
School records also became part of the neglect allegations. Reports said the two older boys were not enrolled in school when police investigated the home. Records showed they had been denied by a previous elementary school because of excessive absences. Ruger’s obituary described him as a proud second grader, but the public filings and reports do not clearly state his school enrollment status at the time he entered the hospital. The education records add another layer to the case because prosecutors allege neglect beyond the medical emergency that ended in Ruger’s death.
Oklahoma City police recorded Ruger’s death as homicide No. 23 of 2026. The department said the incident location was the 13000 block of SE 104th Street, an area in the southeastern part of the metro near Cleveland County. Police announced May 4 that Duty and Busey had been arrested, interviewed and booked on complaints of murder and child neglect. “The Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office will ultimately determine the appropriate charges,” the department said at the time. Local reports later identified the Cleveland County District Attorney’s Office as the office that filed charges.
Ruger’s family memorial described a child whose interests centered on simple things. He liked working with his hands, building trailers, fixing things and spending time around tools. It said he loved music, swimming at the lake, animals and sitting around a fire. The obituary called him strong, energetic and spirited, and said he often hid tools and wrapped them as gifts. It said he was remembered as a “big boy helper” and “Mom’s little man.” Those details now sit beside the court record of a child whose final days are under criminal review.
Busey and Duty were booked into the Cleveland County Jail after their April 29 arrests. Their bonds were set at $5 million each, according to local reports. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for May 26, a key early step where prosecutors can present evidence and a judge can decide whether the case should move forward. Defense attorneys may challenge the state’s evidence, question witnesses or reserve arguments for later hearings. Prosecutors may also update or amend charges as medical records and interviews are reviewed.
The case stands as both a homicide prosecution and a child neglect case involving multiple children. The next answers are expected to come through court filings, medical evidence and any rulings after the preliminary hearing.
Author note: Last updated May 27, 2026.