"We’re talking about torture here": Perez Hilton horrified after mom pleads guilty in harrowing death of 3-year-old Matthew Maison: Details explored

Nearly seven years after the brutal death of three-year-old Matthew Maison, his mother, Amanda Maison, has reportedly pleaded guilty to second-degree homicide, admitting partial responsibility in a case that has shocked Michigan and drawn widespread media attention.

Maison, 33, entered her plea on November 5, 2025, at St. Clair County Circuit Court, almost a decade after Matthew was found dead in his Port Huron Township home in February 2018 as reported by PEOPLE on November 10, 2025.

Investigators said Matthew was discovered by babysitters, his body showing signs of severe and long-term abuse. The St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that Maison and her partner, Maurice Houle, had subjected the boy to systematic violence over two years. Both were charged with first-degree murder in April 2025 before Maison accepted the lesser plea. In court, she acknowledged enabling Houle’s abuse and helping conceal it from authorities.

Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton described the case as “unthinkable” in a post on his website, writing,

"Torture. We’re talking about torture here"

More about the Matthew Maison case

As reported by The Nightly on November 11, 2025, Amanda Maison confessed that she and her partner Maurice Houle “willingly participated in the intentional concealment” of the child’s injuries from Child Protective Services and law enforcement from 2016 through 2018. Authorities believe Matthew Maison was never taken to a doctor during that period because the couple feared his injuries would expose the abuse

In addition to the instances of physical abuse, Maison admitted that she “willfully and wantonly allowed an environment to exist” where the boy was regularly subjected to punishment. Prosecutors allege the couple’s motivation for the killing was to “make room for a child that the two of them could have together,” a claim supported by confirmed in court by Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Joshua Sparling as reported by PEOPLE on November 10, 2025. The attorney told the court the crime was “not an accident” but an attempt to erase the child from their lives.

Even after Matthew Maison’s death, investigators say that Amanda Maison and Maurice Houle “actively contrived a plan” to conceal the cause of death and mislead police. The St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office stated that the two fabricated a story to explain Matthew’s bruises, attempting to portray the fatal injuries as accidental.

Perez Hilton reported that Amanda Maison later told investigators Maurice Houle asked her to “take the fall” for the crime to avoid prison time himself.

Perez Hilton, who talked about the case on his website, described the details as “among the most disturbing” he has ever encountered. His post emphasized how the abuse spanned more than half of Matthew Maison’s short life, with repeated acts of violence under the guise of discipline.

As reported, Amanda Maison admitted to “actively contriving a plan to conceal” the true cause of death as part of her plea deal. Still, she denied committing the fatal act herself, claiming that Houle was the one who killed Matthew Maison on February 18, 2018, and that she did not witness it. Her defense suggested she was manipulated into silence and later coerced to take the blame.

Maurice Houle, 28, remains in custody and has pleaded not guilty to first-degree homicide. His trial is expected to begin in early 2026, where Maison has agreed to testify as part of her plea agreement

Edited by Devangee