A Calcasieu Parish grand jury charges Jaime B. Day, 27, with three counts of second-degree cruelty and five counts of cruelty.
Her husband, Murry Dalton Day, 30, is charged with one count of second-degree cruelty and two counts of cruelty.
The Days have been in jail since their March arrest, unable to post their multi-million dollar bonds. Responding law enforcement officers reported that the oby had bruises on his face and body as well as a severe burn mark on his back.
According to Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s officials, the department received a complaint on February 19 from a woman living in Moss Bluff about the welfare of the child.
The woman said the child was very thin and possibly being held against his will in his bedroom.
The deputy arrived at the residence in south Lake Charles to follow up on the complaint, discovering an almost unspeakable scene.
Once inside the deputy noticed a dog leash tied from one door knob to another to keep the 9-year-old boy from opening his bedroom door.
The child, weighing 38 pounds, was wearing a t-shirt, shorts and a diaper, laying on the a filthy foam mat and box spring covered with blood. The only linen in the room was a bloody, urine saturated sheet. The boy's body and face showed multiple bruises.
The child was transported to a hospital where he was treated for hypothermia due to malnutrition. Upon arrival, the child’s body temperature was an alarming 92 degrees.
During his 13-day hospitalization, the boy was also treated for second degree burns to his back allegedly caused by his stepmother placing a sock full of hot rice on his back.
During further investigation, it was determined that the stepmother was allegedly starving the boy, forcing him to watch the rest of the family eat meals. Investigators also discovered that the boy was forced to eat his own feces and drink his own urine in order to survive.
The boy’s attending physician verified that his injuries and his extreme state of malnutrition are consistent with child abuse, officials said. They also determined, along with detectives, that this abuse had been ongoing from late last year.
Jaime Day was charged with 25 counts of cruelty to a juvenile and two counts of second degree cruelty to a juvenile. Judge David Ritchie set her bond at $5.5 million.
The child's father turned himself in Wednesday afternoon. Murry Dalton Day, 30, of Lake Charles was charged with five counts of cruelty to a juvenile and one count of second degree cruelty to a juvenile. His bond has been set at $2 million.
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