Horror struck a Missouri community when it was revealed that a couple had kept their young son locked in a caged with soiled sheets and fed him food through the bars. They were each charged with a felony for the horrific crime.
Victoria Smith, 42, and her husband Terry Smith, 43, were each charged with first-degree endangering the welfare of a child on March 15 after authorities found their 6-year-old son, who suffers from a severe form of autism, locked inside a makeshift cage in their basement, naked and covered in his own urine and feces in 2010.
The Missouri couple were investigated after the Missouri Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline received an anonymous call on Dec. 15, 2010 alerting authorities about the horrific abuse occurring at the Smith home. The tipster also revealed that the boy was often locked in the cage when there wasn’t a government-funded caretaker at the home, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
When authorities arrived, the little boy’s grandmother, 69, was home watching the 6-year-old and his five siblings. She answered the door, and led them to the makeshift cage in the basement.
Authorities Discover Horror In The Smith’s Basement
According to police, the stench of the boy’s urine was so strong while they descended down the stairs, it was almost unbearable. Even though they spotted the boy naked and covered in his own soil, they said he was playing with a few tays and seemed content.
It took authorities a few minutes to open the cage, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. They also noticed other unsanitary conditions in the home, and that the doorknobs were installed backwards on children’s bedrooms so they could be locked from the outside.
They parents were charged each with a felony on March 15, and face up to seven years in prison if convicted.
So tragic. We hope justice is served in this terrible case.
What do YOU think of Victoria and Terry being charged with felonies HollyMoms? Do you think that’s enough? Let us know in the comments below.
More negligent parents:
- Three-Month-Old Baby Dies Weighing 3 Lbs. — Parents Charged With Murder
- Texas Parents Charged With Starving 11-Year-Old Son To Death
- Mother Nearly Starves Baby To Death — Charged With Domestic Violence
Sam
Posted at 4:51 AM on March 26, 2013
I wonder if it was the grandmother that reported it… Or if the whole family is mentally unstable. Regardless of the fact that he is autistic, this is horrific, the autism however only makes it worse because of his sensory issues. I hope these kids can find a loving home and the parents are forced to face a fate similar to the one they imposed on him.