Charges Filed Over Teen Found Bound In Closet
Foster Mother Faces Charges In Case
POSTED: 3:55 p.m. MDT July 11, 2003
DENVER -- A Denver foster mother faced charges of child abuse Friday after a 15-year-old developmentally disabled girl was found bound in a closet by a social worker.
Yaland R. Royal, 37, was issued a criminal summons and complaint in the case and will be arraigned on the charge Aug. 11, according to the Denver District Attorney's Office.
According to investigators, the teenager was found last month
in the basement closet of Royal's home with a sock
stuffed in her mouth.
The girl had been placed backward into a pair of footed-pajamas
and her arms were bound to her body with a T-shirt, sweat pants,
shirt and panty hose, according to a search warrant. The document
said she also had nylon material around her neck.
A Jefferson County caseworker inspecting the home June 11 found
the teenager in the locked closet after others in the house told
her that the girl was in the basement.
The girl was found kneeling in the closet with the lights off
and the door closed, police said. She appeared nourished and
healthy.
Previous Stories:
- June 17, 2003: Mentally Handicapped Child Found Bound In Closet
Copyright 2003 by TheDenverChannel.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
