Georgia girl punished with shock collar and made to live in chicken coop

[mzkitty]

I saw this on another board:

Georgia home-schooled girl punished with shock collar because ‘the Bible says’
By David Edwards
Friday, July 13, 2012 12:41 EDT


A Georgia couple was arrested this week on charges of child cruelty and false imprisonment after their 15-year-old daughter told authorities that she was forced to live in a chicken coop and wear a remote-controlled shock collar.

The 15-year-old, who was home schooled, reportedly said that her adopted parents, Samuel and Diana Franklin, punished her for not finishing school work by spending up to six days at a time in the chicken coop behind their house in Butler over the past two years.

Chicken coops are known to have high levels of ammonia (PDF) which can be dangerous to both humans and animals.

Authorities said that the girl was also forced to do manual labor and spend time in a 4-foot-wide outhouse.

“I’ve never seen anything like this personally,” Georgia Bureau of Investigation Agent Wayne Smith explained. “If the allegations prove to be true, it’s a very severe case.”

A shock collar was found at the home when the parents were taken into custody on Tuesday. The girl said that a device similar to one that remotely locks and unlocks cars was used to activate the collar and punish her with jolts of electricity.

Authorities said the device appeared to match the description provided by the girl. The collar and a leather belt were being examined at a crime lab for DNA evidence.

Diana Franklin told one neighbor that she was “doing what the Bible says” by punishing the girl for not doing chores the “right way,” according to KLTV.

Diana Franklin was charged with four counts of false imprisonment and 12 counts of cruelty to children. Samuel Franklin also faces charges of 8 counts of false imprisonment and 8 counts of cruelty to children. Both parents were released on bond on Thursday.

Watch this video from WTVM, broadcast July 11, 2012.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/07/1...LqN_g.facebook

[Deena in GA]

Oh my goodness! I sure hope it turns out this isn't true, but worry that it is. Butler is a very rural area. To some people this will make all homeschoolers look bad. WTVM is a local tv station, but I have to come to tb2k to hear this news. Crazy!

[mzkitty]

Oh my goodness! I sure hope it turns out this isn't true, but worry that it is. Butler is a very rural area. To some people this will make all homeschoolers look bad. WTVM is a local tv station, but I have to come to tb2k to hear this news. Crazy!

I don't think it makes home schoolers look bad, Deena. It makes crazy people look bad. And they should. There's no justification for child abuse.

[Gercarson]

I don't think it makes home schoolers look bad, Deena. It makes crazy people look bad. And they should. There's no justification for child abuse.

You're right here mzkitty - but wait for the comments on being "Christian" too - this is a double header for liberals.

[mzkitty]

You're right here mzkitty - but wait for the comments on being "Christian" too - this is a double header for liberals.

I'm sure 99% of real Christians would never dream of things like that.

They were not Christians; they are Sadists using the Bible as an excuse to inflict harm.

Jesus never said lock your kid up in a chicken coop and shock them with a dog collar.

Jesus said anyone who would harm children should put a millstone around their necks and drown themselves, as it would be better that way.

[Sherrynboo]

Wasn't this discussed about a month or so ago but no charges were filed at that time? It sure sounds like the same story to me. I am glad they were charged. I don't know how people can be so cruel!

Sherry in GA

[GopherinTN]

Now call me silly but manual labor is not a punishment and time in a 4 ft outhouse is a relative term with many unfilled questions. I will go with the shock collar being over the line but the other things written seem to stink of piling on. just saying that there is much more to this than the couple of paragraphs written.

[mzkitty]

Now call me silly but manual labor is not a punishment and time in a 4 ft outhouse is a relative term with many unfilled questions. I will go with the shock collar being over the line but the other things written seem to stink of piling on. just saying that there is much more to this than the couple of paragraphs written.

Apparently the cops had enough to charge them both with many things. Their pictures are at the link if you want to see them:

3:02 PM, Jul 11, 2012 | 3 comments

Diana and Samuel Franklin have been charged with multiple counts of 1st degree cruelty to children and false imprisonment.

Diana Franklin has been charged with 12 counts of 1st degree Cruelty to Children and four counts of false imprisonment.

Samuel Franklin has been charged with eight counts of 1st degree cruelty to children and eight counts of false imprisonment.

WMAZ's Austin Lewis first reported about the allegations of child abuse in Taylor County back in May.


The Taylor County parents accused of locking their 15-year-old daughter in a storage building, an outhouse and a chicken coop posted bond late Tuesday. That's according to GBI Special Agent in Charge Wayne Smith.

13WMAZ's Brittiny Barber went to the E. Old Wire Road home in Butler on Wednesday and knocked on the door. She says she could hear people talking inside and the television was on, but no one came to the door.

We also called the couple's home phone number. Diana answered and told us she was not allowed to make a comment, but that we could contact their lawyer Kevin Bradley.

Diana and Samuel Franklin were freed on $5,000 bond for each charge, Smith said.

Diana faces 12 counts of first-degree cruelty to children and four counts of false imprisonment. Her husband is charged with eight counts of first-degree cruelty to children and eight counts of false imprisonment.

Smith says when they made the arrest at the couple's East Old Wire Road home in Butler Tuesday, they saw a dog shock collar in plain sight on a table.

He says the victim alleges her parents used the shock collar to punish her in the past.

During the initial search of the home on June 4, Smith says they were unable to find the collar. On Tuesday, he says they received another search warrant to take the collar as evidence.

Agent Smith told us the Franklins are refusing to talk to investigators. He says they are only communicating through their lawyer.

We called Bradley; he could not be reached for comment.

In May, he released a statement saying the Franklins denied mistreating their daughter.

The couple has three other children, all boys. Smith says one is 17 years old, and still lives at home, and the other two are college age.

http://www.13wmaz.com/news/local/art...ld-Abuse-Case-

[GopherinTN]

Your addition did not clear up any of my questions. Story still remains unanswered and has many unanswered questions.

[PilotFighter]

Hmmm... this shock collar thing just might be the ticket to get my youngest to stop backtalking to the wife. Just zap her little ass when she starts.

[mzkitty]

Hmmm... this shock collar thing just might be the ticket to get my youngest to stop backtalking to the wife. Just zap her little ass when she starts.

Won't work unless you also banish her to the chicken coop.

[sthrnfriedrocker]

I'm sure 99% of real Christians would never dream of things like that.

They were not Christians; they are Sadists using the Bible as an excuse to inflict harm.

Jesus never said lock your kid up in a chicken coop and shock them with a dog collar.

Jesus said anyone who would harm children should put a millstone around their necks and drown themselves, as it would be better that way.

amen.

[Belties]

I don't think it makes home schoolers look bad, Deena. It makes crazy people look bad. And they should. There's no justification for child abuse.

I agree, these are crazy people. But I can't help but worry that Deena is right, and I hope they don't exploit the homeschooling aspect. I'm curious why they even had to mention homeschooling at all, especially in the title. I mean, child abuse happens in other situations, and I don't think I have ever seen a title read "Public Schooled Child Abused by Parents".

[mzkitty]

I agree, these are crazy people. But I can't help but worry that Deena is right, and I hope they don't exploit the homeschooling aspect. I'm curious why they even had to mention homeschooling at all, especially in the title. I mean, child abuse happens in other situations, and I don't think I have ever seen a title read "Public Schooled Child Abused by Parents".

I don't know, but maybe because of the aspect that being "home-schooled" she never got out in public and was kept hidden, so nobody knew what was happening to her? I don't think I saw this when it first came out, so I don't know how the whole thing was uncovered. Does anyone remember?