A West Virginia man and two women are facing charges of abusing three children who were severely beaten, authorities say.
Earlier this month, Michael Stemple, 50, was the first of the three adults to be arrested. He was charged with three counts of child abuse resulting in injury, according to law enforcement in Marion County.
On Friday, Linda Stemple, 45, was also charged with three counts of child abuse resulting in injury in Marion County. Chrystal Ridenour, 27, the mother of the children, was charged with three counts of child abuse resulting in injury in Marion County and three counts of child neglect causing serious bodily injury in Harrison County, authorities said.
The alleged victims are ages 3, 4, and 6.
On Nov. 7, the children were taken to the United Hospital Center in Bridgeport, West Virginia. Authorities were called after staff suspected the children had been abused, according to a criminal complaint obtained by Weston, West Virginia-based CBS affiliate WDTV.
Medical professionals determined the children had suffered internal bleeding on their heads and faces and pressure wounds on their backsides that suggested they had been forced into maintaining the same position for an “unnecessary period of time,” officials said.
“[I]t was apparent that the children had been severely beaten/abused based upon the multitude of bruises on their faces, arms, backs, legs, and chests,” the court document obtained by the TV station reads.
The 3-year-old had been struck “severely in the head, resulting in the white of his eyes to pool blood,” the complaint says.
Two of the children identified Michael Stemple as their abuser to hospital staff, the complaint alleges.
When police spoke with Ridenour, she allegedly confirmed her knowledge of some prior abuse. The mother allegedly said she left her children with the Stemples to babysit them while she was at work.
“[S]he had found out [Stemple] was hitting the children approximately two weeks prior to this complaint and had spoken with [Stemple] about hitting the children,” the original charging document reads.
Michael Stemple, left, Linda Stemple, center, and Chrystal Ridenour, right, appear in booking photos. (West Virginia Division of Corrections)
At the time, after the latest beating, the mother of the children said she was threatened by Michael Stemple, according to the first complaint filed in the case. On Nov. 5, the man allegedly said he would kill Ridenour’s children if she went to the police. Two days later, the children were in the hospital.
The second complaint charging the two women was also obtained by WDTV. The latest court document in the case alleges that Linda Stemple was “an active participant and witness the abuse/torture” of the three children.
That document alleges Ridenour “was also present and witnessed the abuse of [the] three children” and “never attempted to stop or report the abuse.”
Each defendant is detained in the North Central Regional Jail. Michael Stemple is on a $150,012 bond; Linda Stemple is on a $200,512 bond; and Ridenour is on a $225,000 bond.
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