A 14-year-old girl, weighing only 2.5 stone, was rescued from a house where her overweight family members allegedly kept her captive and withheld food as punishment. Upon arrival, authorities discovered the severely underweight and malnourished girl, noting her prominent collar bone, rib cage, hip, and cheek bones, making her appear the size of a six to eight-year-old child.
The girl’s biological father, Walter Goodman, 47, claimed that she did not like to eat and had not been taken to doctors due to his discomfort with one of them. Goodman asserted that the teen, who he claimed was autistic, had been solely in his custody since May 2020.
Concerns arose on August 21 when Goodman sought help for the girl, who had fallen ill and become “comatose” after days without food. Medical professionals diagnosed her with hepatitis, multiple organ dysfunction, and severe malnutrition upon her emergency hospitalization.
Outagamie County assistant district attorney Julie DuQuaine described the girl as resembling a skeleton, weighing only 35lbs (2.5st), while the average weight for a 14-year-old girl in the US is around 9st, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Allegedly, Walter indicated to a friend that he would withhold food from his daughter if she misbehaved, keeping her confined in her room with surveillance and without basic necessities as punishment. Messages exchanged among family members suggested further instances of abuse, including the use of physical force.
Despite the ordeal, the girl has been relocated to another family’s care and is showing signs of improvement in her recovery. Nurses noted that she had no aversions to food and mentioned that Goodman would express anger if she ate too much.
All four adults involved have been charged with chronic child neglect and are currently held in jail on a $100,000 (£76,627) cash bail.
To enhance your news experience, consider adding Daily Mirror as a ‘Preferred Source’ on Google News for timely updates on stories you care about.