Girl, 3, Found in Cage; 3 Relatives Face Charges

RIALTO —  Child abuse charges will be sought today against three relatives of a 3-year-old girl who was forced to sleep in a makeshift cage that was also used to discipline her two brothers, authorities said Thursday.

The girl and her 5- and 6-year-old brothers were placed in the custody of San Bernardino County’s Child Protective Services Department after they were discovered Monday cowering in a room of their single-story house in an unincorporated area of Rialto.

Sheriff’s Detective Thomas Taylor said he plans to present the case to the district attorney’s office. Taylor said a deputy was sent to the house after a neighbor expressed concern about the children being caged inside the house and possible drug activity.

“The deputy found the 3-year-old girl in a makeshift cage made of wood and nailed to the wall,” Taylor said.

The detective said the 5-foot-square cage, with a quarter-inch sleeping pad, was apparently erected a year ago. It was stained with food when the deputy found the girl in it, he said.

“She was still in her pajamas, even through it was nearly noon,” Taylor said. “The 5- and 6-year-olds were huddled in their beds in separate corners of the room.”

Although the girl was treated by a doctor for sores on her body, “the abuse appears to be more emotional than physical,” Taylor said.

Arrested on charges of false imprisonment and cruelty to children were the grandmother, Dorothy Wisdom, 64, who had legal custody of the children, and her husband, Albert Meza, 57. They were released on $10,000 bail each. Deputies also questioned the children’s father, Donald Deackoff, 47.