Norwalk, Ohio – A couple who forced some of their 11 adopted, special-needs children to sleep in cages were sentenced to two years in prison for child endangering Thursday, after emotional statements in which the parents insisted they were only trying to keep the kids safe.
Sharen Gravelle told the court the children were never confined as punishment but rather to protect them, including a child who wanted to jump out a second-floor window.
“Would you prefer that we let them jump? Either way, we’d be here. The difference is they’re still alive,” she said in a 26-minute statement.
Gravelle blamed social-services officials for not helping her and her husband, Michael, control the destructive behavior of some of the youngsters.
The children, who suffered from problems such as fetal alcohol syndrome and a disorder that involves eating nonfood items, ranged in age from 1 to 14 when authorities removed them in September 2005 from the Gravelles’ home in Wakeman, about 60 miles west of Cleveland. They were placed in foster care shortly afterward, and the couple lost custody last March.
Michael Gravelle said the enclosures resulted from the suggestions of a social workers, who recommended strict rules to improve the children’s behavior.
The Gravelles have said they will appeal their convictions. The judge allowed them to remain free on bond pending the appeal.
The couple have said they needed to keep some of the children in enclosed beds with alarms to protect them from their own dangerous behavior and stop them from wandering at night.
Prosecutors said the Gravelles were cruel. Witnesses, including the sheriff and some of the children, said the cages were urine-stained and lacked pillows or mattresses.
