Couple allegedly locked boy in room, forced him to eat his own feces
By Kellen Olshefski
Staff Writer
A Genoa City couple were found guilty April 1 by a 12-person jury in Walworth County Circuit Court of seven of nine counts that stemmed from allegations the pair abused their son.
According to online court records, Carrie Donahue was found guilty of one count of causing mental harm to a child, one count of false imprisonment, one count of child abuse, intentionally causing harm and one count of neglecting a child. Carrie Donahue was found not guilty of one count of disorderly conduct.
Michael Donahue was found guilty of one count of causing mental harm to a child, one count of false imprisonment and one count of neglecting a child. Michael Donahue was found not guilty of one count of child abuse, intentionally causing harm.
The couple are set to next appear in court at 2:30 p.m. on June 9 for a sentencing hearing.
According to the criminal complaint, Michael Donahue’s father reported to Child Protective Services that the Michael and Carrie Donahue would lock the boy in his bedroom for 12 hours at a time then yell at him for urinating in the room. Kenneth Donahue said his grandson would curl up into a fetal position because of all of the emotional abuse he suffered from Michael and Carrie Donahue.
The boy and family members reported the boy had problems with urination and defecation, needed to wear Pull-ups, kept his fingers in his mouth until his mouth bled, didn’t eat or shower, had urine-soaked socks and shoes, sat in a cold, dark room at a bar and stood for long periods of time, according to the criminal complaint.
The boy was admitted to Rogers Memorial Hospital in June 2013, and a doctor reported the boy did not need diapers while at the hospital but his behaviors resumed after he was discharged and sent home, according to the complaint.
The boy’s 14-year-old sister told a forensic interviewer Michael and Carrie Donahue would make the boy keep his hands in his mouth until his lips would bleed and his fingers would be “all wrinkly.”
A Child Protective Services worker reported that since the boy was removed from the Donahues’ home Dec. 16, he no longer needs diapers or psychotropic medications and has gained weight and height.
The girl also told the Tree House interviewer that her brother has a lock on his door that keeps him in.
On Dec. 17, 2013, the boy told the Tree House interviewer that the last time he had eaten was four days earlier. The night before, he said, he was required to stand next to the dinner table, and when everyone was eating in front of him, he got a plate, and Carrie Donahue dumped his plate in the sink and would not let him eat because he snuck food, according to the complaint.
A counselor at Lake Geneva Middle School, where the boy was enrolled from Sept. 13 to Nov. 27, 2013, also reported concerns to the county Department of Health and Human Services.
The counselor said the boy came to school disheveled, wearing dirty clothes and sometimes urine-soaked clothes and asking for food in the morning because he was hungry, according to the complaint.
The boy told social workers that on one occasion in October, he pooped in his pants, and Carrie Donahue made him eat it, according to the complaint.
The boy’s sister said when Michael Donahue came home, he hit the boy in the head for eating poop, according to the complaint.
