DFCS Rescues Abused Homeschooled Children

AUSTELL, GA – Yesterday afternoon, DFCS agents surrounded the house of Austell residents Jerome and Mary-Ann Garner and removed their two homeschooled children after obtaining shocking evidence of domestic abuse. DFCS agents were notified by an anonymous source who claimed to have witnessed the abuse firsthand. Mr and Mrs Garner are currently being held in custody without bail until their hearing next Thursday. Joel and Martin, aged nine and twelve, were removed from the home without incident.

DFCS agent Ron Wilkins said that the abuse, which was both physical and psychological, was some of the strangest and most severe he has seen in years. “Homeschoolers are obviously more prone to abuse than others, which is why you have to keep a close eye on them. But what was happening here really defies explanation,” Wilkins said. “Nobody, and certainly no child, should ever have to endure something like this.”

The Garners allegedly had placed small, hard, uncomfortable seats in a small room of the house that was allegedly sectioned off for “learning.” The children were forced to sit in the tiny chairs for hours upon end, sometimes up to eight hours, were not allowed to get up or move around, and were only permitted to use the bathroom certain times of the day. They were not allowed outside except for a small thirty-minute window, similar to what is done in American penitentiaries. Wilkins claims that this was not the worst of it, however. “These children were subjected not only to unthinkable physical torture, but were treated like animals. When certain periods of the day ended, a loud bell was rung to prod them to move on to the next subject, or to go to a different room. It was just ghastly.”

Though this kind of torture lasted for seven to eight hours of the day, it wasn’t even the end. Even after children were permitted to leave their small seats, they were required to perform endless rote problems for many more hours, sometimes as late as 8 or 9 pm each night. “These are children we’re talking about,” said Wilkins, “We as adults are not subjected to this level of mental exhaustion – what parent would do this to a pre-teen child?”

The Garners did not speak to the police nor have they released any statement as of this morning. Marvin Gladstone, the Garners’ attorney, claims that the arrest was unwarranted. “My clients did not do anything wrong. Once the evidence is brought to light, they will be exonerated.” He stated that his clients were merely trying to take their task of homeschooling seriously and that no abuse was intended whatsoever.

DFCS, however, disagrees. They claim that the treatment of their two children, having gone on for so many years with such consistency, shows an organised and calculated attempt to brainwash their children and to destroy any sense of identity in them. DFCS child psychologist Renee Nesbitt agrees. “You can’t claim that you love your children, and then subject them to this level of bizarre abuse for years on end. The small wooden chairs, the constant ringing of a harsh fire-alarm like bell, the prohibition on speaking, moving, and going outside – it’s despicable,” Nesbitt said. “You might as well send them to a concentration camp.” Nesbitt plans on testifying against the Garners in their upcoming hearing. Nesbitt also claims that she has evidence that the children were routinely drugged with stimulants and anti-depressants in order to allow them to cope with the extremely restrictive and controlling treatment. Though she remains somewhat hopeful, Nesbitt concluded by saying she is unsure if the children will ever be able to recover fully given the breadth and intensity of the abuse.

The Garner children are currently staying with relatives until a long term solution can be found.

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