by Patrick H. Moore
On February 6th, 2012, the 15-year-old victim in this reckless endangerment case (her identity is protected because of her age) decided she couldn’t take it anymore. After several years of being starved and held prisoner in a Madison, Wisconsin basement by her abusive stepmother, Melinda Drabek-Chritton, the girl ran away from home, all 68 pounds of her. A good Samaritan found her barefooted, clad only in pajamas. He called the police.
At first based on her weight and general appearance, the authorities believed she was only eight or nine years old. She described to the police how she was kept in the basement, and was not allowed to use the bathroom upstairs. She further described how she was abused by Drabek-Chritton, and how her stepmother encouraged her stepbrothers to do the same.
A. James of the Guardian Express writes eloquently:
Melinda Drabek-Chritton, 43, of Madison, Wisconsin was sentenced in a Wisconsin court today. She pleaded no contest in April to first-degree recklessly endangering safety and causing mental harm to a child. Her 15-year-old stepdaughter had been starved and mentally abused. Drabek-Chritton will now go to prison.
James explains how this is the story of “two natural parents who put their needs and ambitions before those of a child,” and how there are no ‘good guys’ here, only “one abused and neglected child who was the victim of several ‘bad guys.’”
This is about a 15-year-old girl who was struggling with lifelong emotional issues. Until 2006 she had lived with her birth mother and her stepfather in Texas. Her mother’s husband was a registered sex offender. The young girl claimed she had been sexually abused by him, and later recanted. However, Dane County Human Services investigators eventually determined she had been sexually assaulted.
Stuck between a rock and a hard place in Texas, in 2006, the girl went to live with her father and his wife, Drabek-Chritton, in Madison. She was eight years old at the time. Two years later, in 2008, she had her last doctor’s appointment. In essence, her father and stepmother ‘gave up on her.’ They even stated that they “didn’t want to be bothered with her problems and gave up.”
But, in reality, they did far worse than that, according to the prosecutors, who stated that keeping her in the basement, starving her, and withholding bathroom facilities and ordinary medical care, in effect, amounted to “torture”.
Dane County Circuit Judge Julie Genovese rejected the “torture” charge, stating alternatively that the girl suffered “profound and sustained neglect” that recklessly endangered her safety and ultimately her life.
The girl’s father, Chad Chritton, was convicted of felony child neglect in March. The jury, however, was deadlocked on other charges and Chrittonwill be retried in November.
At least one of her stepbrothers is expected to be charged with sexual assault.
Melinda Drabek-Chritton was sentenced to five years in prison to be followed by three years of extended supervision.
The 15-year-old girl was treated — presumably for malnutrition and overall neglect. She is now living with a foster parent who testified in court on Friday that the girl was slowly improving, but that she continues to have difficulties. She has difficulty with everyday communication, struggles (or doesn’t even try) to make friends, and shrinks from physical contact.
The prosecuting attorney stated that the girl was failed by the system and that she was a victim of uncaring parents. Now that the damage is done, the “system” will lock up the evil stepmother. Her father will also almost assuredly do a stint in a Wisconsin state prison. It is unclear if anything will happen to her sexually abusive biological father in Texas.
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At this point, it is, of course, impossible to predict with any certainty whether the girl will ever be able to recover from the years of abuse and neglect and go on to live any semblance of a normal life. What is certain, however, is that her situation is hardly an isolated case. Child abuse and neglect is a factor in the formation of the criminal mentality in a large percentage of our clients. It is without a doubt among our most pressing social problems and — because it is largely hidden — is one of the most difficult to overcome.