A cerebral palsy child rescued from her home after being starved and neglected for eight years may finally see justice. This week, her alleged tormenters were charged with criminal mistreatment and Medicaid fraud.
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports that the girl was found in a filthy wheelchair . Her room was covered with soiled clothing, dried vomit, and trash. She had 23 rotten teeth and was crying out for help when rescued.
In addition to suffering with cerebral palsy, the child had to contend with starvation that had resulted in a 67-pound “skeletal” frame, and she is said to be nearly blind.
Overseeing her care were 33-year-old April Henderson and 34-year-old Jeffrey Henderson, who according to The Daily Mail , collected $4,100 a month from Medicaid towards the girl’s care , “which they spent on iPhones, TVs and reptiles.”
Neither April nor Jeffrey held a job at the time, reports claim.
The King County Sheriff’s Office and the Department of Social and Health Services were asked to check on the cerebral palsy child in October 2012 by staffers at Children’s Hospital, who became concerned about her health.
When they entered the home in North Bend, Washington, they “were shocked” to find the girl naked except for a dirty diaper.
“The only way to describe her moaning was that of a wounded animal,” said Detective Belinda Paredes-Garrett.
As for the accused couple, they have three sons and a daughter from their marriage of 13 years. They’ve since moved from the home in North Bend to St. Augusta, Florida, where Jeffrey Henderson works at a local gym.
The couple had their children taken from them briefly following the incident, but according to their Facebook accounts, have since regained custody, and neither are in jail at this time.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the only case of child neglect to make world news in the last week.
A father from South Korea was arrested on April 15 after reportedly allowing his infant son to starve to death in his apartment as he played online video games for days at nearby internet cafes.
The 22-year-old father, surname Chung, was arrested by the police officers of the city of Daegu, southeast of Seoul, after authorities found a garbage bag containing the badly decomposed body of his son, according to Hindustan Times .
In the cerebral palsy case, the child thankfully lived. Police said she was placed in the care of a court-appointed guardian, where she has since put on 30 pounds and had 19 root canals to repair the damage done to her teeth.
Authorities noted at the time of her discovery that the other children were unharmed and living in a considerably tidier location within the home.
Do you think the couple taking care of the cerebral palsy child should have custody of the remaining children permanently revoked? What punishment do you believe is in order?