CT - 32-year-old man held captive by stepmother Kimberly Sullivan since age 11, weighs 68 lbs, sets fire to home to escape, 17 Feb 2025

[Lucy6226]

Wow this is horrific. The step mother claiming complete innocence is baffling. She did not seek any medical help for this child and then man...that speaks volumes. Let alone everything else. I hope they throw the book at her. I'll be interested to hear the siblings, although depending on their lived experience and age they might not have known this wasn't normal. But we'll see I guess.

Hope the man can recover from this the best he can and justice is served.

 

[Rolypolyoly]

I wonder if the stepmother will have similar cult like beliefs along the lines of the Turpin family.

To me, this sounds like a classic case of a woman marrying a guy with a kid, her hating the kid and mistreating them (To the absolute extreme in this case) and shutting them out of family life, whilst prioritising her own children. Happens all the time, no cult like beliefs, just a cold hearted, evil b*tch. JMO

 

[Izzylizzy]

IMO MOO

Well thanks a lot Principal Tom. That's great he made 20 calls, good start. Too bad he didn't follow up. It's everyone's job, in such employment fields, to look out for the vulnerable.


ETA: I suppose it would be quite a task to follow up on / keep track of every child where abuse was reported, when the child is no longer at the school.


Maybe there should be such a system in place at multiple agencies and organizations for such extreme cases. It's so easy for vulnerable people to fall through the cracks. A second look, reminder, phone calls, etc. could be a useful safety net.

IMO MOO

IMO:

Judges aren't bound by CPS's decisions so if the school believed that CPS was inadequate and the boy was and continued to be abused they could have gathered their evidence, filed a petition with the courts and argued for an advocate for the child and/or the child's removal from the home.

 

[Izzylizzy]

To me, this sounds like a classic case of a woman marrying a guy with a kid, her hating the kid and mistreating them (To the absolute extreme in this case) and shutting them out of family life, whilst prioritising her own children. Happens all the time, no cult like beliefs, just a cold hearted, evil b*tch. JMO

Here we go again.

Stepparents also have been found to pose a significantly greater risk of using excessive violence, which can subsequently lead to the death of a child. The risk of violence against stepchildren has also been found to be significantly elevated with the presence of stepparent's genetic offspring.

Violence against children by stepparents​

https://pure.hud.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/20139792/Violence_against_children_by_stepparents_Chapter_FINAL.pdf

University of Huddersfield Research Portal
https://pure.hud.ac.uk › files › Violence_against_c...

 

[tlcya]

My opinion only: It sounds to me like the principal did everything he could for this child. I'm perplexed by those who think this was somehow the school or the principal's fault. The neglect was allegedly reported to CPS 20+ times. I'm generally supportive of child welfare workers, but if we're looking for someone outside the family to blame, I think CPS should have followed up with a more thorough investigation into a family that was being reported that many times. It sounds like the school did everything they could. Principals and teachers can't kidnap a child to save them from abuse or prevent their family from taking them out of school to "home school." Blaming the principal by name on a public forum seems inappropriately harsh. MOO.

I want to add that the idea of asking an abused child if they are indeed abused is not the most ideal way to determine if allegations should be determined to be unfounded or not.

 

[LoveyG]

It seems that in this day and age of electronic storage capabilities (and backups), CPS, hospitals, etc. should keep records, regardless of how old, during the lifetime (plus a few years after) of the person in the record. It's not like they need to rent climate-controlled warehouses to store decades of physical records in order to do so. MOO.

I agree and wonder if the 5 year policy is just a carry over from pre-electronic records age. I know as we streamlined the govt office I worked in, we found many, many outdated processes that we were still doing for no other reason than "because we've always done it like that."

 

[Izzylizzy]

I want to add that the idea of asking an abused child if they are indeed abused is not the most ideal way to determine if allegations should be determined to be unfounded or not.

In the arrest warrant the victim said that he was told by Sullivan to tell DCF that all was fine when he was questioned by them 2x.
IMO:
He obviously knew Sullivan's playbook no matter who was questioning him.

Bottom of page 7, continued on page 8.

WARRANT AFFIDAVIT KIMBERLY SULLIVAN Redacted

www.documentcloud.org

 

[Izzylizzy]

It may be wishful thinking on my part but a superseding indictment charging Sullivan with years of torturous abuse that led to the victim being mentally/physically challenged would be more than warranted.
imo:

"He also had decreased mobility in his arms, knees, and joints. He showed signs PTSD and depression, according to the affidavit.

“He’s noted as being developmentally delayed at this time having an adolescent cognitive level,” police wrote. He “demonstrated difficulty problem solving, multitasking and sequencing. He became frequently overwhelmed and needed verbal cues to continue.”

What to know about the Conn. woman who allegedly held her stepson captive for 20 years

When he visited the man in the hospital after the fire, his uncle said, “I was shocked, he looks like a Holocaust survivor.”

www.boston.com

 

[Izzylizzy]

I don't like making comparisons between things and the holocaust, but his uncle wasn't wrong about him looking like a holocaust victim

Auschwitz and Birkenau — Shuttersmack

www.shuttersmack.com

The average weight of a woman freed from the camp was about 50 lbs, and the average weight of a man liberated was 66 lbs.

I'm curious how the insurance company will handle the "Death Camp" fire?
Will the circumstances around the fire give them any leverage for not paying Sullivan?

 

[Smelly Squirrel]

Police press conference from yesterday.

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[Smelly Squirrel]

Yesterday, Kimberly Sullivan appears in court.

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[Smelly Squirrel]

Arrest warrant application pdf

 

[Maat99]

My opinion only: It sounds to me like the principal did everything he could for this child. I'm perplexed by those who think this was somehow the school or the principal's fault. The neglect was allegedly reported to CPS 20+ times. I'm generally supportive of child welfare workers, but if we're looking for someone outside the family to blame, I think CPS should have followed up with a more thorough investigation into a family that was being reported that many times. It sounds like the school did everything they could. Principals and teachers can't kidnap a child to save them from abuse or prevent their family from taking them out of school to "home school." Blaming the principal by name on a public forum seems inappropriately harsh. MOO.

Do people who report neglect or abuse even get to find out what steps are taken as a result? I have made two cps reports. I didn’t get follow up information on what happened in either of them. Foster care? Slap on the wrist? I have no idea. Not sure if it would be different for a school principal.

 

[Izzylizzy]

Do people who report neglect or abuse even get to find out what steps are taken as a result? I have made two cps reports. I didn’t get follow up information on what happened in either of them. Foster care? Slap on the wrist? I have no idea. Not sure if it would be different for a school principal.

The principal did say that CPS did nothing after 20 calls from the school.
IMO:
I gather a school would know if CPS acknowledged the abusive neglect they were reporting about a student and they'd be follow-up with the school involved.
Schools are mandated reporters but I don't know when that law went into effect.
???

 

[mkl9514]

Do people who report neglect or abuse even get to find out what steps are taken as a result? I have made two cps reports. I didn’t get follow up information on what happened in either of them. Foster care? Slap on the wrist? I have no idea. Not sure if it would be different for a school principal.

As someone who is a mandated reported (counselor/social worker):

No, they do not have to fill you in on the details due to confidentiality if something is substantiated. According to the law, we are not entitled to that information. When I've made reports, they only thing they have to give me is a letter confirming that I made a report, in case that ever comes into question by the licensing board. Sometimes, if there are some teeth to the accusations, they will follow up with me for more information- which I am trained to provide but only on a "need to know" basis. AKA, I am only providing objective observations and statements from the child of concerns. I only ever find out if something happened if action is taken while the child of concern is still in my care.

 

[threesevenninefour]

After reading the pdf of the Arrest Warrant application that @Smelly Squirrel so kindly posted…this man has been nothing but resilient throughout his life, even in the face of so much horror. I was struck by how he created a system to use the bathroom that allowed him to keep his space (prison) as clean as possible and how he talked about educating himself by looking up words he didn’t know in his dictionary. I truly pray for the best for him moving forward and I hope he has so much love and support throughout the rest of his life. It’s good that the warrant stated he had what seems like a relative visiting him in the hospital—at least he has someone who cares and is there for him.

MOO.

 

[Smelly Squirrel]

Interview with principal of the elementary school from yesterday.

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[keek]

Interview with principal of the elementary school from yesterday.

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He sickened me.

 

[tlcya]

Kimberly Sullivan sickens me. This man's deceased father sickens me. The half sisters sicken me. Anyone who lived in that home that was the young man's prison sickens me. CPS sickens me.

The school principal and staff do not.

 

[keek]

Kimberly Sullivan sickens me. This man's deceased father sickens me. The half sisters sicken me. Anyone who lived in that home that was the young man's prison sickens me.

The school principal and staff do not.

OH they are a given for sure, otherwise. NO doubt about it. A GIVEN.