Post by Jeanne Sager
Calling in your neighbors for suspected child abuse can be scary, but here's proof that it's worth it. A frail and malnourished teenage boy was rescued this week after months of being handcuffed to a steel pole in his family's basement. Missouri cops say the 17-year-old had been living like that since September, subsisting only on meager meals of instant oatmeal, ramen noodles, and bologna sandwiches. When they rescued the boy, cops say he was cowering in the basement, pleading, "I didn't do anything, I didn't do anything, I didn't do anything." The details get worse from there. But now the unidentified boy is safe and sound with a foster family that's already helped put meat on his bones. And it's all thanks to one woman: a neighbor who isn't afraid to come out and talk about the role she played in getting this child some help.![]()
Calling in your neighbors for suspected child abuse can be scary, but here's proof that it's worth it. A frail and malnourished teenage boy was rescued this week after months of being handcuffed to a steel pole in his family's basement. Missouri cops say the 17-year-old had been living like that since September, subsisting only on meager meals of instant oatmeal, ramen noodles, and bologna sandwiches. When they rescued the boy, cops say he was cowering in the basement, pleading, "I didn't do anything, I didn't do anything, I didn't do anything." The details get worse from there. But now the unidentified boy is safe and sound with a foster family that's already helped put meat on his bones. And it's all thanks to one woman: a neighbor who isn't afraid to come out and talk about the role she played in getting this child some help.