LOWER MACUNGIE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Authorities continue to investigate the conditions in a township home that left twin 15-year-old boys emaciated and allegedly subjected to freezing conditions as punishment, Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan said at a news conference Monday.
Pennsylvania State Police charged Joshua and Tracy Dechant on Sunday with two counts each of endangering the welfare of children.
Neighbors called police on Wednesday after one of the nearly naked boys banged on a neighbor's door pleading for help.
"Our goal is to move quickly to do the investigation as accurately and as rapidly as we can to get answers sufficient to file criminal charges so that we can protect the children. And that's what we did."Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan
The boy weighed 55-pounds — 98 pounds less than doctors would expect for a child his size and age, according to court records.
When police responded to the 1200 block of Divot Drive, they found the boy's twin inside the Dechant's home weighing 53 pounds, investigators said.
Holihan said investigators still are searching for answers as they unpack the case. He asked for patience, saying authorities determined they needed to act fast given the circumstances.
"Our goal is to move quickly to do the investigation as accurately and as rapidly as we can to get answers sufficient to file criminal charges so that we can protect the children," Holihan said.
"And that's what we did."
Joshua Derchant, 36, twins' stepfather, and Tracy Derchant, 42, their mother, were released on bail Monday after posting $75,000 bonds.
The twins have been hospitalized and three younger children have been placed with family, officials said. A 16-year-old sister already was out of the home, lead prosecutor Sarah Heimbach said.
Court documents suggest the Dechants have applied for a public defender, but it did not appear they had been assigned one as of Monday afternoon.
Their preliminary hearing is tentatively scheduled for Feb. 3.
Holihan declined to comment on whether either defendant had previously been investigated for child abuse, saying he did not want to prejudice a potential jury if they had.
'Very malnourished, extremely thin'
When state troopers made contact with the first twin Wednesday, he told police his stepfather forced him to go outside naked as a form of punishment, according to a news release.
The temperature at the time was in the single digits, the release said.
Troopers noted the boy was “very malnourished and extremely thin,” according to a criminal complaint. They also spoke with neighbors who said the boy had knocked on their door seeking help and, once inside the home, would not stop eating.
When police encountered the second victim, both boys told police their mother and stepfather subjected them to multiple types of abuse, including denial of food and water.
They also forced them to stand outside naked in freezing temperatures and sleep on the floor with only a single blanket to share, according to the release.
Authorities released photos of the boys' skeletal backs and one boy's knees with apparent bed sores. LehighValleyNews.com has opted not to release them due to their disturbing nature.
'Not a normal situation'
Holihan said both boys were hospitalized because of their “dire medical situation.”
Authorities believe the twins had not received professional medical care in eight years, he said. In that time, they gained just 10 pounds, he said.
"Everything our investigation shows is that the neighbors responded wonderfully. They opened their home to a stranger who was at their door. They took the child in. Fed him. Clothed him. They did exactly what we would want them to do."Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan
"It was obvious to the neighbor that this was a child in distress," Holihan said. "It was obvious to the first responders that this is a child in distress.
"It is obvious to the treatment providers at the hospital that this was not a normal situation."
He said the twins appeared to have limited interactions with people outside the home; they did not appear to attend traditional school.
There was no evidence to suggest neighbors may have been aware of the apparent abuse taking place in the household, Holihan said.
"Everything our investigation shows is that the neighbors responded wonderfully. They opened their home to a stranger who was at their door," Holihan said.
"They took the child in. Fed him. Clothed him. They did exactly what we would want them to do."
