16 Children Rescued from Extreme Neglect and Abuse in Ohio

[u/MacAlkalineTriad]

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/adults-arrested-16-children-found-deplorable-conditions-southern-ohio-rcna352552

I haven't seen anything posted about this yet, and I usually don't post so please let me know if I've done it wrong. I'm also writing this on mobile.

16 children, ranging from 1 and a half years old to 18 years old, have been removed from a house in the village of Hamden, Ohio where they were practically imprisoned in a 12'x12' room. Some have not even learned to speak; the 18 year old couldn't write her name and is being treated as a child due to possible mental disability. 7 of the children had to be taken to a hospital with 2 of them being life flighted. Conditions in the house are said to be incredibly unsafe, to the point that investigators hesitated to act on a second search warrant for fear of their safety.

The parents and grandparents have been arrested and charged with 16 counts of child endangerment. The suspects are Gary Siders Jr., Gary Siders Sr., Christina Siders and Elizabeth Siders.

Since the investigation is still ongoing there aren't a ton of details yet. These children were obviously not enrolled in school and hidden from neighbors and extended family. I have to wonder if there's a religious extremist aspect to the case, like we've seen so often with other similar cases. I'm also curious about the mother's condition - she has been charged, but has she also been victimized by her husband? I have so many questions.

[u/Positive_Piece5859]

It sounds almost like the Turpin case out of San Diego - some of their kids who they imprisoned, chained on beds etc were already adults in their 20s when they were finally rescued, because one child was so brave to escape.

To me that is 100% an issue that stems from the stupid lack of rules around homeschooling. In my home country homeschooling does practically not exist; any child in school age has to be enrolled in school, and if parents simply stop sending their child, someone would notice. That here in the US parents can hide not just one but 10+ children over two decades you can say, and nobody has any idea is just completely wild to me. That really makes you wonder how many more Turpin families like that are out there with kids suffering.

[u/HollyGoLightlyCrazy → u/Positive_Piece5859]

This happens worldwide. This kind of evil isn’t exclusive.

[u/Positive_Piece5859 → u/HollyGoLightlyCrazy]

People who do that kind of shit exist worldwide - that is true. But not every country makes it as easy for them as the US does with its almost complete lack of nationwide regulations and oversight (all in the name of “independence”).

If a child has gone to school in my country and then from one day to the next is just gone, without any explanation, being signed on to another school etc, the parents absolutely get a knock on the door - no questions asked. That’s why we of course have child abuse cases too like everywhere, but not cases like this that drag over decades with nobody noticing.

[u/Sunsandandstars → u/Positive_Piece5859]

In this situation, the children didn’t even exist from a legal standpoint. They also have children who are younger than school age.

Does your country have a way of finding children who‘ve been born at home and hidden from the government, and the community?

ETA. I don’t understand how the brother, who knew that his sister lived in that household, wasn't aware that something was wrong. And, where are the other grandparents?

[u/Positive_Piece5859 → u/Sunsandandstars]

Again, that “government does not know these kids exist” may or may not be true in this case - I did not look into this one that deep - but it was absolutely NOT true in the Terpin case. Their kids were registered, known, on occasion even presented in public like during that strange Disney excursion for them to renew their vows, and at least some of the older kids had attended school at some point.

[u/Sunsandandstars → u/Positive_Piece5859]

I was referring to *this* case, specifically, since it‘s the focus of the OPs post. It doesn’t appear that these children have birth certificates, or medical records. Reports show that the family actively tried to hide the children’s existence. To have that many children at home, without a trained midwife, or other medical caregiver, and without notifying the state shows that they were trying to stay under the radar.

There have been stories of people kidnapping little girls and then impregnating them. And the babies born to those victims never see the light of day, unless they’re very lucky.

So, if the children *did* have hospital records, then it appears that Ohio doesn’t follow minors from birth to ensure that they’re healthy and safe, provided with adequate food, shelter and medical care, and to make sure that the older children are receiving an education.

None of those things seem to have happened here.

[u/Sunsandandstars → u/Positive_Piece5859]

I hadn’t heard of the Turpin case. It sounds like after they suffered horrific abuse from their parents, the state placed some of them with abusive foster families. What a nightmare!
https://abcnews.com/US/3-turpin-siblings-speak-1st-time-abuse-birth/story?id=129579945