Anthony
Super Moderator
Tulsa parents were arrested on alleged child abuse charges this week while their 2-year-old daughter is in a local hospital.
The toddler is in critical condition after being starved by her parents, police say. The 3-year-old child weighs 13 pounds.
The police went to the home of Mark Knapp and Elizabeth Pester arrested and booked them on one complaint of child abuse and child neglect complaints.
The authorities were notified by the department of Human Services that the toddler was in Saint Francis hospital in critical condition.
Records show that this isn’t the first incident, the child had been in DHS custody and was returned to the parents last year.
Police say the toddler was in the hospital in June 2012 for failure to thrive and the weight at that time was 13 pounds.
The child was to have weekly weight checks every week, a source said.
DHS spokesman Mark Beutler released the following statement:
"There’s always much more to the story, but DHS is not at liberty to discuss the details of the case. Situations sometimes occur where parents may try to elude DHS or will not cooperate," Beutler. "We do take our responsibility to monitor a child’s safety very seriously. Parents, however, are also responsible for the safety and proper care of their children."
Knapp and Pester remain held in lieu of $50,000 bail each.
