A third headline-grabbing case involving allegations of child abuse and neglect in Ohio is again shining a light on the state's child protective system and how potential concerns are reported to authorities.
In 2025, child protection agencies investigated nearly 78,000 abuse and neglect reports and had 14,261 children in custody, according to the Public Children Services Association of Ohio. Of those reports screened-in, nearly a third involved physical abuse and a quarter involved neglect.
Experts say more children entering care in recent years have increasingly complex and severe needs. On top of that, each year across Ohio, nearly one in four child protective services employees leaves the job − largely due to burnout.
This year alone, three
cases involving children living in unsafe housing conditions have made headlines and caught the attention of state and local officials.
Nine children found in Etna mobile home
The latest case came to light Oct. 13, when Licking County Sheriff's Office deputies arrested two parents after nine children were found in "appalling and unsafe" living conditions in an Etna Township mobile home.
Jonathan Parr, 37, and Jacquelyn Coleman, 32, face child endangerment charges after Licking County sheriff's detectives searched their mobile home in the 13600 block of National Road (U.S. 40) SW, according to the sheriff's office.
Deputies received a referral from Licking County Child Protective Services after an undisclosed Licking County school district reported alleged child abuse and neglect, Sheriff's Capt. Jay Cook said during a news conference. The mobile home is located in the Southwest Licking Local School District.
Court documents say Licking County CPS suspected "physical abuse, including failure to provide food and water, insufficient living space, and juveniles being forced to stand for hours with nails between their toes and locked behind cages or barriers."
Licking County CPS took custody of all nine children, ranging in age from 1 to 13, according to the sheriff's office. Children told investigators that they were forced to squat against a wall as punishment, with nails in the floor as markers for their feet, Cook said.
Parr and Coleman each appeared for bond hearings Oct. 14 in Licking County Common Pleas Court in Newark.
"It's not true. I didn’t keep anybody in cages or [commit] any of the other charges," Parr said during his bond hearing. "I love my kids. I would die for my kids."
Both parents are being held in the Licking County jail in lieu of $150,000 bond each.
Dayton police find five children squatting in abandoned house
Earlier this month, Montgomery County Children's Services got involved in a case near Dayton after an attorney managing a boarded-up residence discovered five unsupervised children squatting inside.
According to The Cincinnati Enquirer, Dayton police found five children ages 4 to 12 staying at the property on Oct. 1 without food, electricity, or adult supervision. Officials said the house was a "nuisance abated" property and officers encountered the children while responding to a welfare check.
After learning that police removed the children from the property, their mother called the Montgomery County Regional Dispatch Center. She said she was rushed to the hospital early that morning and her 15-year-old son was supposed to be watching his younger siblings.
Vinton County case sparked national attention after 16 children rescued from 'deplorable' conditions
Those incidents bear resemblance to the Siders family case out of Vinton County earlier this summer. State and local law enforcement agencies discovered 16 children living in conditions officials described as "deplorable" in a five-room rental home in the village of Hamden while serving a warrant for a different case.
In a press conference the next day, officials said two children were flown to Level 1 trauma centers. They said the home was significantly contaminated with feces, and there was no evidence that the children were currently enrolled in school.
Four adults – Gary L. Siders Sr., 73, Gary L. Siders Jr., 36, Christina Siders, 67, and Elizabeth Siders, 33 – were arrested and charged with 16 counts of felony child endangerment June 30.
A Vinton County grand jury later indicted Elizabeth Siders and Gary Siders Jr. on additional charges, two counts each of sexual battery and two counts each of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor in a case involving a minor more than 10 years younger than the couple who was not one of the children rescued from the home.
Charges against Gary Siders Sr. have since been dropped after he was found not competent to stand trial due to health issues.
Who reports suspected child abuse and neglect?
Doctors, nurses, teachers, social workers and other licensed professionals are required by law to report suspected child abuse and neglect. Ohio recently added police officers as mandatory reporters, becoming one of the last of the 50 states in the nation to require law enforcement to report suspected abuse to child welfare agencies.
But anyone can make report child abuse and neglect with or without providing their name.
Cook told reporters Oct. 14 the advice he would give to individuals, particularly those who work in schools, is to be observant. If a child looks malnourished or unkempt, it could be a sign that something serious is going on at home.
"It comes down to if you see something, say something," he said. "We have to speak up so we can help some of these kids."
How tips are handled
State administrative law spells out how reports of suspected abuse and neglect must be handled. Here are the basics:
- Agencies must be able to accept reports 24/7, either by having employees on call or contracting with a county sheriff's department.
- Each tip must be logged and categorized based on info provided by the caller. If the tip is deemed credible, the case is "screened in" and goes to the next steps. (Tips that are screened out might be referred for other services, such as drug treatment or food assistance.)
- A safety assessment is supposed to be done within four days, which includes interviewing adults in the household and perhaps contacting neighbors, teachers or health care providers.
- If a child has been harmed or is in imminent danger, a welfare worker must attempt a face-to-face contact with the victim within one hour. Children can be removed from a home immediately, though the welfare agency would also seek court approval.
- If an allegation of abuse is substantiated, an ongoing plan is developed, which may involve the judicial system. Children may be placed in foster care or with a relative or family friend. Eventually, they may be reunited with their parents.
Dispatch reporters Laura Bischoff, Bailey Gallion and Newark Advocate reporter Josué Perez contributed to this article.
Higher education reporter Sheridan Hendrix can be reached at shendrix@dispatch.com and on Signal at @sheridan.120. You can follow her on Instagram at @sheridanwrites.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: School raised alarms about Etna kids living in 'appalling' conditions
