Couple jailed after raising kids in house filled with flies and faeces
Published: 2013 October 09 10:15:14 (4667 Views)
Colorado couple Wayne Sperling, 66, and Lorinda Bailey, 35, have been jailed after they allegedly tried to raise their 4 children in an apartment filled with hundreds of flies, piles of animal faeces and the overwhelming odour of a decomposing body.
All four children were unable to speak, and communicated with each other with grunts and infant-like noises.
According to Denver Police, an investigation was launched September 29 after Lorinda Bailey brought her 2-year-old son to St. Joseph's Children's Hospital to be treated for a cut on his forehead.
During the examination, the doctor noted that the boy was unable to verbally communicate, appeared unwashed and smelled like cigarette smoke.
Bailey told the doctor that the child's injury resulted from a fall earlier that day, however, the doctor found bruising behind his ear that was consistent with being pinched.
The child's health issues prompted a call to social services and Denver police.
During the investigation, the case worker who arrived at the hospital informed officers that there were three other children at the couple's apartment.
Officers followed the social worker to the couple's apartment in order to conduct a welfare check on the remaining children.
When officers entered the couple's residence, they were greeted with the "unbearable" odour of a decomposing animal that seemed to be coming from a back bedroom.
An officer tried to locate the source of the smell, but had to abandon the effort because every room in the house (especially the back bedrooms) had become infested with flies.
Authorities found five cats living inside the apartment, with piles of faeces and urine soaked carpet throughout the residence.
The children (ages 2, 4, 5 and 6) were unable to communicate verbally with officers and used a series of grunt noises to communicate with each other.
An officer stated in the arrest affidavit that the three oldest children seemed to be at the same level of development, and two of the children were wearing nothing but a diaper.
Bailey told investigators that all of her children were healthy and she didn't have any trouble communicating with them.
She also questioned why the officer thought her apartment was dirty.
Sperling, who identified himself as a stay at home dad, told officers that none of the children were attending school or a day care, and that he was planning to home-school the oldest child.
He also explained that the children "have their own language" and use it to communicate with him and his wife.
Sperling pointed officers to a 2" thick pile of faeces under the children's bed and stated "it looks like human, but it's the cats."
He also explained that the flies were thick in the back bedrooms because it was summer time and the cats refused to use the litter box.
Sperling and Bailey were booked into jail and charged with four counts of felony child abuse. They remain jailed in lieu of $5,000 bond.
- WV
All four children were unable to speak, and communicated with each other with grunts and infant-like noises.
According to Denver Police, an investigation was launched September 29 after Lorinda Bailey brought her 2-year-old son to St. Joseph's Children's Hospital to be treated for a cut on his forehead.
During the examination, the doctor noted that the boy was unable to verbally communicate, appeared unwashed and smelled like cigarette smoke.
Bailey told the doctor that the child's injury resulted from a fall earlier that day, however, the doctor found bruising behind his ear that was consistent with being pinched.
The child's health issues prompted a call to social services and Denver police.
During the investigation, the case worker who arrived at the hospital informed officers that there were three other children at the couple's apartment.
Officers followed the social worker to the couple's apartment in order to conduct a welfare check on the remaining children.
When officers entered the couple's residence, they were greeted with the "unbearable" odour of a decomposing animal that seemed to be coming from a back bedroom.
An officer tried to locate the source of the smell, but had to abandon the effort because every room in the house (especially the back bedrooms) had become infested with flies.
Authorities found five cats living inside the apartment, with piles of faeces and urine soaked carpet throughout the residence.
The children (ages 2, 4, 5 and 6) were unable to communicate verbally with officers and used a series of grunt noises to communicate with each other.
An officer stated in the arrest affidavit that the three oldest children seemed to be at the same level of development, and two of the children were wearing nothing but a diaper.
Bailey told investigators that all of her children were healthy and she didn't have any trouble communicating with them.
She also questioned why the officer thought her apartment was dirty.
Sperling, who identified himself as a stay at home dad, told officers that none of the children were attending school or a day care, and that he was planning to home-school the oldest child.
He also explained that the children "have their own language" and use it to communicate with him and his wife.
Sperling pointed officers to a 2" thick pile of faeces under the children's bed and stated "it looks like human, but it's the cats."
He also explained that the flies were thick in the back bedrooms because it was summer time and the cats refused to use the litter box.
Sperling and Bailey were booked into jail and charged with four counts of felony child abuse. They remain jailed in lieu of $5,000 bond.
- WV
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