Pa. Couple Charged With Caging Disabled Child
DUSHORE, Pa. (AP) - A northern Pennsylvania couple have been charged with keeping their 12-year-old daughter, who has cerebral palsy, in a makeshift cage and in a locked closet.
State police charged 55-year-old Richard Frankenfield and 49-year-old Mary Beth Frankenfield of Dushore with felony counts of false imprisonment of a child and child endangerment.
Police say the abuse began in December 2010, when the child turned 10. They say the couple locked her in a cage made from a crib and plywood and forced her to stay there for extended periods. Then the couple allegedly locked her in their bedroom closet for long periods and called it her bedroom.
The suspects told police they wanted to protect the child from getting into things.
They were jailed Thursday, with bail set at $85,000.
It's not clear whether they have attorneys, and a phone listing could not be located.
(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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