An Indiana man convicted of taking the life of an infant girl is now a free person — and he is cashing in on that freedom in ways that are drawing widespread attention.
Jonathan Richardson, who now goes by Autumn Cordellione, had been locked away on a 55-year sentence handed down after he killed his 11-month-old stepdaughter.
His release happened in December, but the public was kept in the dark about it until late March — months after he had already walked out of the facility.
The early release put Richardson back on the streets with the overwhelming majority of his five-decade sentence left uncompleted.
The quiet nature of the release has itself become a point of contention, with many questioning why the public was not notified at the time Richardson walked free.
Within a short time of regaining his freedom, Richardson moved to monetize his newfound liberty by setting up an account on OnlyFans, a platform widely used for the sale of explicit and pornographic material, according to reporting from Reduxx.
He has since been actively selling that type of content through the account.
Court records and deposition testimony paint a detailed picture of Richardson’s background prior to his incarceration.
At the time of the killing, Richardson had been briefly married to the mother of the child whose life he ended.
He also testified under oath that he had held a janitorial position at an adult bookstore, a business that dealt in pornographic video content.
During that same deposition, he acknowledged having sex with male patrons of the store while presenting himself as female.
Since his release, Richardson has also established a visible presence on social media, using multiple platforms to broadcast his life and image to a growing online audience.
On TikTok, Richardson has been producing and posting videos that use artificial intelligence to reshape his physical image, including one video bearing the caption “#Meaftermysurgeries,” which depicts an AI-altered version of himself with a narrow waist, large breasts and hips, dressed in revealing clothing.
Another TikTok post features an AI-generated clip of Richardson twerking.
The videos have circulated widely online, drawing significant reaction from viewers across the political spectrum.
His TikTok profile bio identifies him as a “transwoman who recently was released from prison after almost 26 years,” further describing himself as pansexual, in his 40s, and a self-proclaimed “civil rights activist.”
While still behind bars, Richardson mounted a legal campaign to obtain gender transition surgeries at the expense of the state, a fight that eventually reached the federal bench.
In September 2024, Southern District of Indiana Judge Richard Young sided with Richardson and the American Civil Liberties Union, ruling that denying him a sex change surgery amounted to “cruel and unusual punishment” under the Constitution.
The judge’s order directed the Indiana Department of Corrections to make the surgery available to Richardson without delay.
The ACLU’s involvement in the case drew criticism from those who argued the organization was prioritizing the demands of a convicted child killer over the interests of taxpayers and the justice system.
The original wish list Richardson submitted included a “vagina,” breast implants, a brow lift and reduction, a uterus transplant, a tummy tuck, gluteal implants, and hair removal, among other procedures.
That expansive list was ultimately trimmed by the court to two procedures: penile inversion surgery and an orchiectomy, a procedure that surgically removes the testicles.
The case has reignited a broader national conversation about the rights afforded to convicted criminals while incarcerated, as well as the mechanisms that allow for early release from lengthy sentences.
Richardson’s story has drawn particular scrutiny given the nature of his original crime — the killing of a child less than a year old — and the degree to which he has sought public visibility since walking free.
The victim, Richardson’s 11-month-old stepdaughter, was killed before she had the chance to take her first steps.
