Background: The intersection of Quarry Road and South Lancaster Street in Swatara Township, Pa. (Google Maps). Insets (from left to right): Jade Shuey and Tucker Heagy (Lebanon County Jail).
The mother of a 5-year-old boy who was found wandering naked on a Pennsylvania road and her boyfriend face more trouble after authorities issued new charges against them.
Jade Shuey and Tucker Heagy, both 21, as well as 42-year-old Stephanie Schaffner, had all been charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Now, Shuey and Heagy face additional charges — including aggravated assault on a victim less than 13 years old, conspiracy to commit aggravated assault on a victim less than 13 years old, and unlawful restraint of a minor.
All three appeared in Lebanon County court for a preliminary hearing on Thursday during which more details in the harrowing case came to light.
As Law&Crime previously reported, on July 10 at about 7:30 a.m., Pennsylvania State Police were called to the intersection of Quarry Road and South Lancaster Street in Swatara Township, Pennsylvania. The area is some 95 miles northwest of Philadelphia.
Witnesses had reportedly told troopers that they found a 5-year-old boy "naked walking in the middle of the road." Authorities brought the child to a hospital to be evaluated.
Investigators determined that the boy "escaped" from a nearby home on North Poplar Street in the township. When authorities went there, they observed "[h]oarder conditions" inside, such as "trash throughout, hundreds of flies," and "limited room for maneuvering the house" due to the "clutter."
One bedroom seemed particularly startling for troopers, though. It apparently had a baby gate "affixed to the outside of the door frame" being held together by "numerous zip ties and duct tape."
"Above the baby gate, there was miscellaneous wood boards drilled into the outside of the door frame to prevent the male child from escaping the bedroom," Pennsylvania State Police said, noting that the room belonged to the 5-year-old boy. "Feces was observed to be smeared on the walls, feces smeared on the bedroom window, a bed was observed to be torn apart with food all over it, trash was observed on the floor, hundreds of flies flying around the bedroom and the residence, along with various children's toys scattered throughout."
Lebanon County District Attorney Pier Hess Graf decried the circumstances the child had to live with.
"This little boy lived in hell," she said, per regional NBC affiliate WGAL. "He lived locked behind caged bars, able to look out at his family but not live a real life. He existed in pure filth."
"His mother and grandmother failed him. Every second of every minute of every day, that child deserved a better life and maternal love," the DA added. "Our Office intends to fully prosecute these heinous criminals and hold them fully accountable for the abuse. It's a sad reality that their prison cells will be far cleaner and far more accommodating than the living conditions they intentionally created for that little boy."
Shuey was identified as the boy's mother, Heagy was Shuey's boyfriend, and Schaffner was the child's grandmother.
When authorities spoke with Shuey, she said the boy spent 90% or so of his day in the room and sometimes would stay there for up to three days without leaving, according to the TV station. He was allegedly fed through the gate and was bathed once a week, if that.
Heagy has another preliminary hearing scheduled for Aug. 6. The other two defendants do not have future hearings listed in their court records.