Georgia parents arrested after starving 10-year-old son runs away to beg for food: cops
Two Georgia parents were arrested for child abuse and negligence after their starving 10-year-old son was found wandering their neighborhood looking for a grocery store where he could beg for food.
Griffin police arrested Tyler and Krista Schindley after their neighbors found their emaciated son lost in the streets on Friday, with the child begging cops to “please not make him go back.”
They said the boy was intentionally starved and weighed only about 36 pounds when he was rescued, about half the weight of a typical 10-year-old and nearly the weight of an average 4-year-old.
“This child was, simply put, being starved to death, and it is tragic,” Griffin District Attorney Marie Broder said during a press conference Tuesday.
“I truly believe that if he had not gotten out of that home, this would be a very different case.”
The parents were accused of locking the child inside his bedroom and leaving him alone in the home for “extended periods of time, and on multiple occasions, with no access to lights, food, clothing or adult interaction and/or assistance,” according to court documents.
They also allegedly withheld hot water, views of the outside, toilet paper, and human interaction from the 10-year-old, and even beat him at one point, causing further injuries.
The starving child was quickly taken to a nearby hospital, where he is being treated for malnutrition and a low heart rate.
The boy also suffered from “dental injury and disfiguration” as a result of his starvation, injuries the parents allegedly failed to treat.
“This case is just disturbing,” said Broder, who has spent the bulk of her career prosecuting child abuse suspects. “It’s heartbreaking.”
Officials added that there were other children in the home, and they have since been placed in the custody of the state Department of Family and Children’s Services.
The Schindleys have been charged with criminal attempts to commit a felony, false imprisonment, two battery counts, and three cruelty to children counts.
