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An Annville Township couple is accused of beating their young son, denying him water for periods of time and forcing him to sleep in only a diaper on a cold basement floor until he was taken to the hospital with hypothermia, prosecutors said.
Stephanie and Robert Duncan, of Annville Township, are charged with multiple counts of aggravated assault, simple assault, tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, endangering the welfare of a child, and conspiring with one another. (Lebanon County District Attorney's Office)
Robert and Stephanie A. Duncan have five adopted children, all of whom faced “graphic punishments, restrictions, and the denial of basic, necessary sustenance” at the hands of the couple, according to Lebanon County Prosecutor Pier Hess Graf. The children range from 6 to 15 years old.
The Duncans’ 11-year-old son — identified by prosecutors as “L.D.” — was taken Jan. 13 to the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center after he was found unresponsive and hypothermic in the family’s basement, in which he lived full-time with two other siblings, according to Graf.
Prosecutors said L.D. had unusually low blood pressure and bruises on his neck, shoulders, back, abdomen, hip and genitals. Investigators said doctors told them L.D. did not have a pre-existing condition and the injuries didn’t appear to be accidental.
L.D. showed signs of “serious bodily injury” resulting from exposure to cold, significant fluid restriction, possible ingestion of a sodium-containing liquid such as diluted bleach, and physical abuse, according to prosecutors.
L.D. would have died if he had not received emergency medical care, doctors reportedly told investigators.
“The child’s significant hypothermia could only be caused by prolonged exposure to extreme cold,” Graf said.
Stephanie Duncan told authorities L.D. went to bed the night before with only a headache. Investigators said she could not explain his weakened state or low blood pressure.
Further investigation found the Duncans had a “caste system” for doling out abuse among the children, Graf said. The three oldest children were abused the most and lived in concrete rooms in the basement with few personal belongings, according to Graf.
L.D. suffered “near daily torment,” but all four sons were beaten and strangled, Graf said. The children told investigators the Duncans also slapped their 6-year-old daughter in the mouth.
When the investigation began, the Duncans put a space heater and a mattress with bedding in L.D.’s otherwise bare room, according to Graf. In reality, she said, a livestream video camera in L.D.’s room showed him lying facedown on the bare floor wearing only a diaper a week before he was hospitalized.
“Both defendants actively mislead medical professionals and investigators about L.D.’s home life and reasons for his hospitalization,” Graf said.
The day L.D. was taken to the hospital, Stephanie Duncan found him unresponsive in his room — unable to speak, walk or stand, according to Graf. Prosecutors said she grabbed L.D. by the neck and dragged him upstairs. L.D. threw up anything he ate, and a thermometer reading showed his temperature was low, Graf said.
More@link ‘Unspeakable fear, violence, torment’: Parents charged with abusing 5 adopted children, nearly killing 1, prosecutor says
Stephanie and Robert Duncan, of Annville Township, are charged with multiple counts of aggravated assault, simple assault, tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, endangering the welfare of a child, and conspiring with one another. (Lebanon County District Attorney's Office)
Robert and Stephanie A. Duncan have five adopted children, all of whom faced “graphic punishments, restrictions, and the denial of basic, necessary sustenance” at the hands of the couple, according to Lebanon County Prosecutor Pier Hess Graf. The children range from 6 to 15 years old.
The Duncans’ 11-year-old son — identified by prosecutors as “L.D.” — was taken Jan. 13 to the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center after he was found unresponsive and hypothermic in the family’s basement, in which he lived full-time with two other siblings, according to Graf.
Prosecutors said L.D. had unusually low blood pressure and bruises on his neck, shoulders, back, abdomen, hip and genitals. Investigators said doctors told them L.D. did not have a pre-existing condition and the injuries didn’t appear to be accidental.
L.D. showed signs of “serious bodily injury” resulting from exposure to cold, significant fluid restriction, possible ingestion of a sodium-containing liquid such as diluted bleach, and physical abuse, according to prosecutors.
L.D. would have died if he had not received emergency medical care, doctors reportedly told investigators.
“The child’s significant hypothermia could only be caused by prolonged exposure to extreme cold,” Graf said.
Stephanie Duncan told authorities L.D. went to bed the night before with only a headache. Investigators said she could not explain his weakened state or low blood pressure.
Further investigation found the Duncans had a “caste system” for doling out abuse among the children, Graf said. The three oldest children were abused the most and lived in concrete rooms in the basement with few personal belongings, according to Graf.
L.D. suffered “near daily torment,” but all four sons were beaten and strangled, Graf said. The children told investigators the Duncans also slapped their 6-year-old daughter in the mouth.
When the investigation began, the Duncans put a space heater and a mattress with bedding in L.D.’s otherwise bare room, according to Graf. In reality, she said, a livestream video camera in L.D.’s room showed him lying facedown on the bare floor wearing only a diaper a week before he was hospitalized.
“Both defendants actively mislead medical professionals and investigators about L.D.’s home life and reasons for his hospitalization,” Graf said.
The day L.D. was taken to the hospital, Stephanie Duncan found him unresponsive in his room — unable to speak, walk or stand, according to Graf. Prosecutors said she grabbed L.D. by the neck and dragged him upstairs. L.D. threw up anything he ate, and a thermometer reading showed his temperature was low, Graf said.
More@link ‘Unspeakable fear, violence, torment’: Parents charged with abusing 5 adopted children, nearly killing 1, prosecutor says
it! Will you be my friend?
. So close to poor Max from last year, too 
