I don’t know if Skylea had official diagnosis of disability (there are some indicators she might have). If so, her fate was even more predestined, as multiple studies have shown more frequent abuse of disabled children and adults.
Maltreatment of Children with Disabilities - Fact Sheet
To add to it, the stepmom, in her writings (quite literate, she knows when one should use “continually”, and when “continuously”) seems to demonstrate symptoms of a mental illness. And she knows it. Into this mix, you throw in drugs that she likely consumes (self-acknowledged marijuana in high amounts, at least, but I doubt that was all), and it makes the situation volatile and potentially critical.
I have questions about the father, too. Hadn’t he guessed that things were not OK? What about his sense of smell? The corpse lying in the shed for several hot days, and none the wiser? What about flies? Is the father so overworked, trying to feed this huge family, that he delegates all decisions about the household to his wife, and merely checks out? Or is his wife so volatile that he is afraid of her and sides against own kid? Very likely.
One wonders how they all managed, financially, probably, extremely poorly, and how did end up with so many children in the house when they obviously can’t take care of themselves. Homeschool? Give me a break.
And I bet I shall soon read about the CPS failing the family. CPS is underfunded, and they see so many similar families, and their hands are tied, because there are not enough reliable foster parents around.