Shelby County couple, charged with abusing teen kept in their basement, granted lower bond

By Ivana Hrynkiw | ihrynkiw@al.com

A Shelby County couple charged with abusing their adoptive son, who authorities said was locked in the couple's basement for two years, had their bonds lowered Wednesday.

Shelby County Chief Assistant District Attorney Roger Hepburn said at a court hearing Wednesday morning he reached an agreement with lawyers for Richard and Cynthia Kelly, and agreed to drop their bond to $100,000 each. The two have been held in the Shelby County Jail on a $1 million bond each since their arrest in November 2016.

Shelby County Circuit Judge William Bostick granted the request, and officially lowered the bonds just after the hearing.

Richard Kelly, 57, and Cynthia Kelly, 47, are charged with aggravated child abuse.

In November, Helena police were notified by hospital staff of a 14-year-old boy who was in critical condition. Police said Richard Kelly took the young teen-- his adoptive son-- to Shelby Baptist Medical Center when the teen's condition worsened. The boy, whose name has not been released, weighed 47 pounds when he arrived.

He was then taken to at Children's Hospital where his body temperature was 86 degrees, which doctors said is insufficient to sustain life.

Police testimony from a preliminary hearing earlier this year showed the boy was kept in "forced isolation" by his adoptive parents and spent approximately 23 hours a day in a concrete basement with just box-springs, a strip of fly paper, and an Algebra book.

"Today's ruling concerns only the issue of bond. While both Richard Kelly and Cynthia Kelly remain innocent until proven guilty, the State of Alabama intends to prosecute this case vigorously and to the fullest extent that the law will allow," Hepburn said.

Records show the couple received $500 a month from the state through the Department of Health and Human Services and Alabama DHR to care for their son. According to arrest warrants, the couple is accused of denying food, nourishment, and medical care to their son. Authorities have said his isolation was disciplinary in nature.

Police said when the young teen arrived at the hospital, doctors said he was severely and chronically malnourished, dehydrated, suffering from acute respiratory distress, shock, hypothermia, hypothyroid, and was close to death. He had pressure sores on his legs, and was placed on a ventilator for about a week to help him breathe.

Police said at the preliminary hearing there were locks on the outside of the basement doors where the teen was kept. There was also a video surveillance camera that was used to keep an eye on the teen and his older brother who had previously been locked in the basement, police said. The camera didn't work anymore, but police said the Kellys made the teen believe it did and that they were watching him. The boy was fed once a day.

The teen's biological brother, 18-year-old Eddie Carter, said he suffered the same abuse from Richard and Cynthia Kelly. He now lives in Arizona, but said he was kept in the basement for weeks and months at a time. He spoke with AL.com after the Kellys were arrested.

When the Kellys were arrested, the couple's 19-year-old adopted daughter was also living at their Helena home. She was not harmed. Richard Kelly was unemployed at the time; Cynthia Kelly was a stay-at-home mother who home-schooled her adopted children.

As of February, the young teen had been released from the hospital into a therapeutic foster home where he is said to be doing well.

The Kellys are represented by Jarred Welborn, John Medaris, and Barry Alvis.