Adoptive mom in abuse case gets jail time

Four of the children who said they were abused by adoptive parents John Henry and Carol Ann Thomas thanked the couple in court Monday for taking them into their home and for the good times they had as a family.

Five of the children then told Judge Thomas H. Kelley of the repeated abuse they received at the hands of the Thomases and why Carol Thomas should be punished for it.

The Thomases pleaded no contest to charges against them -- John Thomas for sexual assault and unlawful contact with a minor and Carol Thomas for endangering the welfare of children -- in September.

John Thomas, 53, is scheduled for sentencing in January.

Carol Thomas, 60, was sentenced to one to two years in York County Prison on Monday.

The oldest of the adoptive children told Kelley that Carol Thomas blamed her for the sexual abuse she received from John Thomas. She said Carol Thomas learned of the abuse by reading the teen's diary.

"She smacked me in the face and told me to get out of the house, that I was breaking up her home," the girl said. "Carol Thomas told me I was her angel, her pride and joy. But when she found out what her husband did to me, I wasn't her angel anymore."

Carol Thomas' supporters also addressed Kelley. Sharon Lincoln, a minister at Mount Calvary Baptist Church, said she had been counseling the woman.

"One of her greatest errors was not knowing how to handle the situation," she said.

Daryl Kinard, an associate minister at Unity Church of God in Christ, said, "I give kudos to Carol for what she has done for the community in raising children."

Kelley noted Carol Thomas had no prior criminal record.

However, Kelley said, Carol Thomas' failure to intervene to protect her oldest daughter from her husband was akin to leaving a loaded gun in the house.

"She continued every day to place the children, especially the oldest, in jeopardy," he said. The safety of the children comes above protecting the spouse. Spouses can protect themselves. When she was confronted with the allegation that her husband was (sexually) abusing her daughter, there is only one appropriate response -- contact the authorities."

Kelley directed Carol Thomas, who has remained free on $100,000 bail, to report to county prison to begin serving her sentence on Dec. 19.