KEY POINTS:
CHICAGO - A judge today sentenced an Ohio couple to two years in prison for endangering and abusing some of their 11 foster children by locking them in caged bunk beds.
"I thought the sentence should have been harsher," said Huron County Prosecutor Russ Leffler, who had asked for 12-year sentences for Michael and Sharen Gravelle.
"Bumps and bruises can heal, but the psychological damage can last for a very long time," Leffler said, adding the couple had been ordered to pay US$11,000 ($16,072) for the children's counselling.
The Gravelles were freed by Common Pleas Judge Earl McGimpsey pending an appeal of their convictions for child endangering and abuse involving the 11 special-needs children under their care.
The children were removed from the Gravelles' home in 2005. The couple lost custody of the children last year, but the Gravelles' lawyers have filed an appeal.
Leffler said the judge noted the couple's lack of prior criminal history and called them "good people" prior to sentencing.
Michael Gravelle told the court the couple had been overwhelmed by the children's behavior, several of whom suffered from disabilities such as fetal alcohol syndrome and a disorder that leads to eating dirt.
"I've never seen behaviour like this. The things they did, I didn't know what to do," Gravelle said.
The cages were built to keep the children from hurting themselves and stealing food, the Gravelles said, but prosecutors argued the couple meted out punishment such as locking children in their bunks and making them sleep in a bathtub.
- REUTERS
