A sick Oklahoma couple who left a teen girl strapped to a tree for three days because she soiled herself has been arrested.
Johnny James, 41, who pleaded guilty to child abuse and neglect, received a 35-year sentence for carrying out the horrific ‘punishment’ on his daughter. His girlfriend Kayla Clark, 42, who pleaded guilty to child neglect and enabling abuse, was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
On July 28, last year, a Washington County Sheriff’s Office team was dispatched to the couple’s home after a woman called 911. She said a 15-year-old girl was tied up in the backyard of a property in Vera, about 25 miles north of Tulsa, and needed medical attention.
According to an affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, the witness stated that the girl had “a hole in her leg and lesions on her arms”. She claimed she had been secretly bringing her food. However, she also informed cops that the teen had been bound for three days.
When officers arrived at the scene, they discovered the 15-year-old girl near a red shed and a chicken coop. She was sitting on a small piece of carpet and appeared to have an injured knee. According to Law&Crime, the affidavit stated that she was wearing a “ratchet-style tie down strap around her”.
A relative of the girl who was discovered at the address, identified as the girl’s nana, initially pretended to be unaware of her terrible condition. Later, she admitted that she was aware of the horrific situation but was “too afraid” of James to intervene.
Cops spoke with James when he returned home a short time later, and he said he tied the teen up because she “cannot be trusted.” He claimed she had only been bound in the backyard for an hour, but admitted he had used the same sick method to restrain her twice.
According to the affidavit, Johnny explained that she was left outside to go to the store or church this morning because she was peeing and pooping on herself and did not want to do it inside, so they sat her outside so there would be no mess. When asked, Johnny stated that this was the only way to keep her restrained because he didn’t know what else he could do to help her.”
Police later questioned Clark about the punishment, but she claimed to be unaware of what was going on and had been “taking a shower” during the most recent incident. She claimed she hadn’t seen her in the backyard when the couple went to church in the morning because she was “frazzled”.
Later, emergency services arrived on the scene and transported the girl to the hospital. Officers from the Department of Human Services also went to the address and removed other children from it.
The victim has now been placed in foster care. James and Clark were sentenced on Wednesday. Neither will be eligible for parole until they have served 85% of their sentences, according to Fox 23.
