A 13-year-old’s parents were charged with child abuse after being accused of forcing the teen into a makeshift jail cell for over a year, Utah officials said.
On Aug. 18, Unified police officers went to the home of Melissa Gray, 41, and Travis Peterson, 49, and found the 13-year-old boy in a “pantry in the hallway with a metal and wood gate in front of it with a lock on it,” according to an Aug. 30 news release by the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office.
Gray, the boy’s stepmom, told police he’d been there for the “past 24 hours,” prosecutors said.
During his interview, the boy yelled at the investigator that he wasn’t going to get dinner, officials said.
He told police he used to sleep in a cell in his bedroom with five locks on it that had been made a year and a half earlier, officials said.
The teen initially thought the makeshift jail cell was a “joke,” officials said.
But, according to the boy, when his parents strictly gave him three bathroom breaks, breakfast and dinner, along with papers to make “requests,” he knew they were “serious,” officials said.
Then the boy, who was only visited by the family puppy while being “sad” and “lonely,” stopped getting the paper, officials said.
He had been pulled out of school and was being taught at home by Gray, officials said.
Gray wanted the boy to know “what jail was like” and created a “reward system” called “Peterson Bucks” that allowed him to earn money he could use to purchase meals and food, court documents said.
She told investigators it was all part of her plan to teach the boy about “sacrifice” and “needing to go without to pay bills,” court documents stated.
Gray and Peterson were arrested and charged with child abuse, officials said.
If you suspect a child has experienced, is currently experiencing, or is at risk of experiencing abuse or neglect, your first step should be to contact the appropriate agency. The Child Welfare Information Gateway has a list of state agencies you can contact. Find help specific to your area here.
For additional help, the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline has professional crisis counselors available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in over 170 languages. All calls are confidential. The hotline offers crisis intervention, information, and referrals to thousands of emergency, social service, and support resources. You can call or text 1-800-422-4453 .
If you believe a child is in immediate danger, please call 911 for help.
Man chains kids to beds and sexually assaults one for years, California officials say
Grandma noticed bruises on boy’s legs at school pickup, cops say. Now man pleads guilty
Malnourished 7-week-old baby boy dies in Idaho, feds say. Mom is going to prison
Local News
