An adopted teenage son testified Wednesday against his parents, who are accused of keeping him in a dog crate and of routinely beating him and his two siblings and making them eat dog food.

John Edward Kluth, 50, and Sonja K. Kluth, 57, are charged in Canadian County with child abuse and neglect. They were ordered to trial at the conclusion of the preliminary hearing, said Paul Hesse, assistant district attorney.

Bill James, attorney for the Kluths, could not be reached for comment.

The state called the teenager to testify during the five-hour hearing, Hesse said.

The couple are accused of beating, choking and burning their three adopted children, ages 15, 11 and 9, according to an arrest affidavit. John Kluth told investigators the two boys and a girl came to them already abused.

The boys were confined in a darkened cellar at their Yukon home for up to seven months at a time, and the Kluths kept the eldest boy in a dog crate for up to two months, the affidavit states.

The abuse charges came to light after the oldest boy ran away and authorities found him sleeping in a box behind a Braum’s in Oklahoma City. All three were taken into state custody.

Sonja Kluth told investigators she had become a monster and that she lost all control when trying to deal with the children.

John Kluth admitted to excessively punishing the children, the affidavit states but blamed most of the severe abuse on his wife.

The Kluths adopted the children from Winnebago County, Wis., and had been receiving $4,500 a month in support money until Wisconsin authorities learned about the arrests.

The couple are scheduled to return to court Aug. 23. They are free on bail.

If you are being charged with a criminal offense and need legal assistance, please contact The Swain Law Firm at (405)501-0827 to receive a free consultation.

Law Offices of Matt Swain

405-501-0827

A Lawton toddler who died in January had a fractured skull and his body was covered in bruises, scabs and scars, according to the final autopsy report.

The child’s pregnant mother is awaiting trial on murder and child abuse charges.

Timothy Long Jr. was 19 months old when he died January 4 in an Oklahoma City hospital, the day after he became unresponsive while under the care of his mother’s 16 year old boyfriend.

The boyfriend told police the child’s two year old sister hit him in the head with a hammer.

Ashley Wright, 23, admitted to police she injured her son and also told investigators she gave marijuana to her children.

“She did admit to causing some of the injuries that resulted in his death,” Lawton police detective Craig Akard said Friday.
 
The juvenile boyfriend was not charged, Akard said.
 
Timothy died from blunt force trauma to the head and abdomen, the state medical examiner’s office ruled.

Medical examiners found a 3 inch skull fracture and multiple bruises on the child’s forehead, face, legs and buttocks. They also found retinal hemorrhages and detached retinas.
 
Assistant District Attorney Irma Newburn said the child abuse charge stemmed in part from Wright admitting to police she blew smoke from a marijuana cigarette into her children’s faces to get them away from her, and she put the cigarettes into their mouths so they could take “hits.”
 
Wright also admitted to hitting her 2 year old daughter with her fist when she was angry, Newburn said.
 
The daughter was taken into protective custody.
 
Don Gutteridge, Wright’s attorney, said his client is nine months pregnant and expected to give birth at the end of June. He declined to discuss the case, but said he is preparing for trial.
 
In a plea negotiation, Wright was offered a 35 year sentence on the murder charge, Newburn said.

If Wright accepts the plea, Newburn said, she will combine the cases so both sentences will run concurrently.
 
Wright is in the Comanche County jail in lieu of $52,500 bail. She is set to go to trial in September on both charges.

If you have been charged with murder, sex crime, fraud, assault, etc., please contact The Swain Law Firm at (405) 501-0827 for your free consultation.

Law Offices of Matt Swain

405-501-0827

The grandmother of the Muskogee child who died Monday told police she knew the child had been sexually abused, according to court documents.

Betty Hall, 42, told police she saw evidence her son, Robert Jack Meeks II, had sexually assaulted the 4-year-old child about 12:30 a.m. Saturday, the probable cause affidavit states.

Hall said she was scared to say anything to Meeks or her husband and she was going to wait and hope the injuries healed, the document states.

Additionally, the document indicates the child, only referred to as Christina, was on a heart monitor and was “unable to speak or make any verbal noise to alert her being in distress.”

Christina was taken to Muskogee Regional Medical Center some time Sunday, with a high fever and in cardiopulmonary arrest, according to the report.

Christina was later flown to a Tulsa Hospital, where she died at 4:55 a.m., police said.

Amy Elliott, a representative with the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s Office in Tulsa, said the cause and manner of death has not been determined, pending further studies.

Hall was booked on complaints of child abuse, failure to seek medical attention for a child and failure to report child abuse. Her bond was set at $50,000 Tuesday afternoon.

Meeks was booked on complaints of child abuse, first-degree rape and lewd acts to a minor and was ordered held without bond.

Shortly before the bond meeting Tuesday, medical equipment was being removed from Christina’s home on Lawrence Street, including a hospital bed.

Her family attended the bond hearing for Hall and Meeks. The two accused appeared side-by-side via video during the hearing.

District Attorney Larry Moore showed pictures to the court and said he was doing so to illustrate why he asked for no bond for Meeks.

Meeks crossed his arms on the table in front of him and set his chin on his arms throughout the hearing. Hall rested her chin in her palm, elbow on the table. Neither said anything during the bond hearing.

Meeks and Hall return to court today at 3 p.m. for their initial appearances at which time, charges will be presented.

If you are being charged with a criminal offense and need legal assistance, please contact The Swain Law Firm at (405)501-0827 to receive a free consultation.

Law Offices of Matt Swain

405-501-0827