LAKE STEVENS, Wash. — Police in Lake Stevens, Wash. found three children abandoned in a home and “living in deplorable conditions … surrounded by animal feces and garbage with no heat or food present.”
The parents, Mark Dorson and Amanda Ann Foley, both 33, were arrested and booked on charges of felony criminal mistreatment and abandonment of a dependent person, according to KCPQ.
“I’m just shocked. Why? Why do that to your own children,” said neighbor Victoria Vanackeren.
The children, ages 7 and 3 years old and 11 months old, were found Saturday when officers were called to a home in the 9700 block of 11th Place SE.
“When they arrived, they spoke with a 7-year-old female who was padlocked inside the house, from the inside,” a police news release said.
It's unknown how long they were left unattended in the home, but when they were taken to the hospital, one of the children “had a core temperature of 94 degrees and was treated for hypothermia and dehydration,” police said.
All three children are in the custody of Child Protective Services. There is a history of CPS complaints at the home, KCPQ reports.
A family member called the allegations a misunderstanding.
