Children found in locked cages

HEATHER CHAPIN-FOWLER

Nine cages, which were about 40 inches tall by 40 inches deep, were found in the 2330 St. John Road residence where Michael and Sharen Gravelle, 56 and 57, lived with the 11 children, sheriff's Lt. Randy Sommers said.

Some of the cage doors were rigged with alarms that sounded if opened, while others were blocked by heavy furniture to prevent the children from getting out, Sommers said.

Joe North, an investigator with the Department of Job and Family Services, stopped by the home on Friday and was invited inside, Sommers said. North "just saw a little face behind a cage" and called Sommers immediately after leaving the residence, Sommers said.

The deputies executed a search warrant and removed the children immediately, Sommers said.

There were nine cages found in bedrooms along with two mattresses, making for "very stark" furnishings, Sommers said. They had no blankets or pillows, Sommers said.

"They weren't normal kids' rooms filled with toys and such," he said.

At a shelter care hearing yesterday, the children were temporarily placed in the custody of the Department of Job and Family Services and placed in four foster homes, Juvenile Court Administrator Chris Mushett said.

There were two 3-year-olds, two 7-year-olds, two 8-year-olds, a 1-year-old, a 6-year-old, a 9-year-old, a 13-year-old and a 14-year-old taken who were living in the house, Sommers said.

Investigators believe nine of the children were kept in the cages for punishment as well as to sleep at night, Mushett and Sommers said. One of the older boys told Sommers he was made to sleep in the cage for the past three years, Sommers said.

Many of the children have medical conditions, but Sommers would not divulge the details because of privacy laws, he said. According to the complaint filed in the Huron County Juvenile Court by the Huron County Prosecutor's Office, some of the children suffer from fetal alcohol syndrome, Mushett said.

Recently, someone told authorities they had seen the cages more than a year ago, but the information was too old on which to act, Sommers said. Authorities acted after they received a recent complaint by a neighbor who said the children were working in the garden and yard abnormally long hours, Sommers said.

The Gravelles, who have not been charged, were reserved when the deputies arrived and took the children, Sommers said. They will likely face child endangering charges in addition to others, Sommers said.

"The impression that we got was that they felt it was OK," Sommers said of conversations with the couple.

Yesterday, the Gravelles attended the court hearing with an attorney and denied allegations of abuse and neglect, Mushett said. There were no signs that the children had been malnourished or beaten; however, they were all sent for medical examinations, Sommers said.

Sommers and the Department of Job and Family Services are tracking down what agency arranged the adoptions, the family's history and other details, he said.

"I know there's going to be a lot of questions and there needs to be," Sommers said of the ongoing investigation.

The investigators believe the children are from out of state and were adopted through private agencies, said Mushett, who didn't have further details and referred further questions to the Huron County Prosecutor's Office.

Prosecutor Russ Leffler, who is reviewing the matter for charges, according to Sommers, wasn't available for comment yesterday.

At least two of the children at one point attended Western Reserve Schools, Sommers said. Neighbors believe the children were most recently home-schooled, said Sherry Hall, who lives in the area.

The home, which was built in 1940, is listed as having five-rooms, including three bedrooms and is owned by the Gravelles, according to the Huron County auditor's Web site.

"I feel really bad about what I've heard. ... It gives me the chills," said Hall. "It just tears my heart out. Really makes you wonder. That's just the strangest thing we've ever heard."

The Gravelles lived in the small house for at least 10 years, and the first two adopted children moved in about five years ago, Hall said. Gradually, more and more children moved into the home, she said.

"It's just appalling," she said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.