Articles Posted in Child Abuse

Published on:

by

A couple was arrested on Wednesday when authorities found that they live in a box made of plywood, and had been residing there with their three children for several years.

Mona Kirk and Daniel Panico of Joshua Tree have three children and they have reportedly lived well below the poverty level for quite some time. The couple owns a piece of land in a rural area, and they have parked a trailer on the property in order to provide shelter to their family. Near the trailer, they have an outdoor box-like structure made out of plywood, and there is no electricity or running water on the land. They have been making ends meet in this fashion for the last four years.

The children, ages 11, 13 and 14 are homeschooled and are said to be very intelligent. Their parents keep them active in community activities such as the local scout group, and frequented educational spots including the Hi-Desert Nature Museum in Yucca Valley, and the public library, as reported by friends of the family.

Continue reading →
Published on:

by

A teacher’s aide was approached by a high school student who shared that she was the victim of an alleged rape, and he is facing charges for failing to report the information to the proper authorities.

A girl attending Ridgewood High School in Pasco County, Florida, purportedly suffered a sexual assault and confided in one of the teacher’s aides about the attack.

She later shared the details of the happening with a school resource deputy, and a formal investigation of her claim was opened.

Continue reading →
Published on:

by

A middle school teacher was charged with child abuse after she reportedly forced one of her students to leave the class when he chose not to participate in standing for the Pledge of Allegiance.

On February 1 a physical education teacher who is employed at the Angevine Middle School in Colorado was accused of becoming involved in an altercation with one of her students.

59-year-old Karen Smith, a teacher for the Boulder Valley School District for the past 20 years, allegedly did not approve when one of her students chose to sit instead of standing as is traditional during the Pledge of Allegiance. Smith reportedly grasped the child by his jacket and pulled him to his feet before ushering him out of the room.

Continue reading →
Published on:

by

Two Maryland woman in a domestic partnership who share a home have been accused of several child abuse related charges when three children in their care were allegedly fed dog excrement and found with several types of injuries.

29-year-old Amanda Wright and her girlfriend 25-year-old Besline Joseph share a home with three children, ages 8, 9 and 10. The relationship between the women and the children has not been made public.

In a period that investigators purport began late in the spring of 2017 Wright and Joseph are believed to have kept the children locked in closets as well as in the basement of the home. Injuries on the victims led investigators to the notion that the women had been using several items, including sticks and belts, to beat the youngsters. A stun gun was also discovered in the home and assumed as one of the items used in the alleged abuse.

Continue reading →
Published on:

by

A man who was being sought by the authorities for allegedly abusing his ex-girlfriend’s 3-year-old child by hitting her with a belt and sticking her in the oven turned himself on Thursday, and he is vehemently fighting the accusations against him.

45-year-old Terry Lee May, a father of five, had been taking care of his ex-girlfriend’s toddler for a few weeks after the woman left him to look after the young girl. When the child’s mother returned to pick her up she claimed she had discovered marks on her body.

The mother notified the authorities and the Department of Children and Families in order to report her daughter’s injuries. The child reportedly suffered burns to her ears and ankles, and what was assessed as belt markings on other parts of her body. It was concluded that the child had been beaten and then placed inside of an oven while she was in May’s care. The child told the officials that May had struck her with a belt more than once.

Continue reading →
Published on:

by

A man who crashed a wedding in Wisconsin took a blow from the bride when she learned he was allegedly acting in a lewd manner by touching and flirting with several of the teenage girls in attendance.

25-year-old William Dickinson and a male coworker had been hanging out in a local hotel bar and having drinks when they reportedly decided to crash a wedding in search of women.

Dickinson purportedly began acting inappropriately with teenage girls at the celebration. He approached two females, aged 17 and 18, and attempted to dance with them. They were uninterested in his advances and tried to move away from Dickinson, but according to the complaint, he asked the 18-year-old to join him in his hotel room. When the girls began moving away from Dickinson he reached out and grabbed the girl’s bottom.

Continue reading →
Published on:

by

Four children were taken into custody by the Los Angeles County Department of Child and Family Services on Tuesday when a child abuse investigation at their home uncovered illegal firearms and ammunition stored in the open and unsecured.

Paul Anthony Cruz, a father and convicted felon, was being interviewed by South Pasadena police at his home on January 23, due to suspicions that his children were being abused. A social worker from the Los Angeles County Department of Child and Family Services was also present.

While inside the home and speaking to the father, officers allegedly discovered a semi-automatic assault-style rifle that was fully loaded inside of the bedroom of one of the children. The social worker took custody of the four children residing with Cruz; three youngsters and one 11-year-old boy.

Continue reading →
Published on:

by

A teacher from New York City who has been accused of performing oral sex on one of her 14-year-old male students entered a plea of not guilty to the criminal charges at a hearing on Saturday.

29-year-old Dori Myers has been employed as a social studies teacher at the New School for Leadership and the Arts in the Bronx since 2014. She also started a track team for the students of the school. Myers is the wife of a deputy sheriff, and they share a home in Rockland County.

On November 1, Myers was accused of sexually abusing one of her male students at a location off campus in Manhattan. According to reports, the teenager told one of his classmates that he had a sexual encounter where Myers administered oral sex, and the classmate informed the school principal of what he had been told.

Continue reading →
Published on:

by

A Perris couple with thirteen children was taken into custody on Sunday when one of their teenagers snuck out of their home and called 911 to report that her parents were holding her hostage with her 12 siblings.

57-year-old David Allen Turpin and his wife, 49-year-old Louise Anna Turpin, have been married for 34 years. The couple share 13 children, the youngest of which is 2-years-old and the eldest 29.

The Turpin parents homeschool their children, and Mr. Turpin serves as the principal of the Sandcastle Day School; a state approved facility that operates out of the Perris residence. Records reflected six of the children were enrolled this year, and they were being instructed in sixth grade through twelfth grade materials.

Continue reading →
Published on:

by

On Friday, the parents of two young boys who authorities allege tried to trade their children for money, or possibly drugs, have entered a plea of no contest to charges of felony attempted child abandonment.

Lancaster residents Vincent Calogero and Sarah Nilson, the parents of two toddlers, were reportedly under the influence of a controlled substance when they began offering the children to strangers. The sheriff’s department speculated that they were trying to give the boys away in order to obtain cash or narcotics.

Deputies dispatched to the family’s home to investigate reported child abuse and arrested 38-year-old Calogero and 32-year-old Nilson.

Continue reading →
Contact Information
19200 Von Karman Ave, #600
Irvine, CA 92612
Phone: (949) 477-8088 Fax: (949) 477-8089

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Please do not include any confidential or sensitive information in a contact form, text message, or voicemail. The contact form sends information by non-encrypted email, which is not secure. Submitting a contact form, sending a text message, making a phone call, or leaving a voicemail does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Copyright © 2016 – 2025, Law Offices Of Staycie R. Sena
JUSTIA Law Firm Blog Design