Jury convicts father of child neglect, deadlocks on other charges related to 68-pound daughter
A Wisconsin man accused of starving and torturing his teenage daughter was convicted of child neglect late Friday, but jurors couldn't reach a verdict on several other charges.
Jurors found the 41-year-old Madison man guilty of felony child neglect, which carries a 6-year prison sentence, but they told the judge they couldn't reach a unanimous decision on the four other felonies he faced, including child abuse and false imprisonment. He was found not guilty of a misdemeanor neglect charge.
The Associated Press isn't naming the man to avoid identifying the girl, who says she was sexually assaulted by her stepbrother. He's been charged separately, as has the girl's stepmother. The now-16-year-old girl said her father kept her locked in the basement, and she testified she was denied food and endured years of physical abuse. She weighed 68 pounds when she fled the family's home 13 months ago.
Her father's defense attorney, William Hayes, argued during the trial that the girl had adequate food and clothing available but chose not to dress appropriately or eat well. He described the girl as a liar with mental illness and said she had threatened her stepmother and half-brother. Hayes also said her father tried to get the teenager mental health care, but failed, and that he eventually moved her to the basement at the advice of a psychologist.
http://www.twincities.com/wisconsin/ci_22801328/wisconsin-jury-deadlocks-madison-child-maltreatment-trial
There's a lot more to this story about a teenaged girl who was abused by her family and eventually found by someone in the neighborhood. It would have been really interesting to hear what when on in that jury room since they couldn't agree on the other charges against the father. This poor child was treated horribly.
