‘Dr. Phil’ show to shine light back on mysterious deaths of two local children

It's been nearly 12 years since the unexplained deaths of Darby Hodges and Kiera Pulaski, but former Flathead Valley resident Cheryl Hodges refuses to give up hope of getting answers — and justice — for her grandson and his stepsister.

The siblings died months apart in 2010. Both were under the care of Cheryl Hodges' former daughter-in-law and her then boyfriend. And both deaths were ruled undetermined by authorities. No charges were ever filed.

"I just began to become a detective because nobody else would do it," said Cheryl Hodges. "I wrote everybody I could think of — Nancy Grace, the president, this president and the last president, the first ladies, all the governors, the attorney general, the county commissioners — and I pushed and pushed and pushed and nobody would do anything. Then I called the 'Dr. Phil' show."

Cheryl Hodges made her first appearance on the show, hosted by Phil McGraw, in 2014. That appearance, spread over two episodes, also featured the mother of the two children, Julia Savage Cummings, and her husband, Codey Cummings. Although Cheryl Hodges had the opportunity to confront her former daughter-in-law, the appearance came and went without satisfying answers to the questions surrounding the two children's deaths.

Now Cheryl Hodges is returning to the program to update McGraw on her quest for justice. The episode is set to be aired this evening at 4 p.m. on KPAX Channel 8. She hopes the return appearance will generate new leads.

"Pretty soon, it’s going to be national news again," Cheryl Hodges said. "The last time, when the two shows were on, the police, they had so many calls they couldn’t keep up with them. It’s probably going to happen again."

WHEN DARBY Hodges died in Kalispell, medical examiners found broken ribs, multiple contusions and abrasions to the 18-month-old's head. Kiera Pulaski, 4, died 12 weeks later in Republic, Missouri.

While the explanation given for her death was a fall in the bathroom, medical examiners in that state found a large hematoma on her brain. The two were buried alongside one another in Conrad Cemetery in Kalispell.

Cheryl Hodges has long believed that Julia and Codey Cummings played a role in the deaths. Julia married Cheryl Hodges' son, Tommy, in 2007. Kiera and another child came from a previous marriage. Darby joined the family in 2008.

But by 2010, the family had come apart. Cheryl Hodges said Julia Cummings had fallen into drugs. Tommy, then in the U.S. Army, did what he could, she said.

Eventually, Julia Cummings moved back to Montana with the children in tow. Cheryl Hodges recalled placing several calls with Child and Family Services, worried about her grandson during that period. When he died, she immediately suspected Julia and Codey Cummings, particularly the latter.

"He’s the one who found [Darby Hodges] and he’s the one who was alone with them both times," she said.

In the years that followed, Cheryl Hodges became a leading advocate for child abuse awareness. It's a cause she remains passionate about as she continues to hunt for answers.

"If you beat a dog, the community is in an uproar. If you beat a kid people look the other way," she said. "Oh, it’s their kid, it’s their business. To me, and maybe it’s just me, don’t you think that one of our most important natural resources is our children?"

But her husband suffered a debilitating stroke about five years ago. Cheryl Hodges now spends much of her time caring for him.

Still, she has kept tabs on her former daughter-in-law and Codey Cummings. The two have had several run-ins with law enforcement in Missouri's Bates and Vernon counties, she said. With the prospect of jail time before them and a new episode of "Dr. Phil" again bringing attention to the children's deaths, Cheryl Hodges hopes one or the other will come forward with new information.

"I’m trying to get [Julia Cummings] to talk. I’m calling all the detectives, trying to get her to talk," Cheryl Hodges said. "Now is the time to talk."

News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.