BUCYRUS — A Crestline couple was back in Crawford County Common Pleas Court on Wednesday to address a potential motion to join their cases.
Katrina Miller, 36 and John Miller, 35, of Crestline are being held on several charges involving the abuse of their son.
The couple are individually charged with one count of kidnapping, a first-degree felony punishable with up to 11 years in prison, one count each of felonious assault, second-degree felonies punishable with up to eight years in prison, three counts of child endangerment, each third-degree felonies punishable with up to 36 months in prison and additionally John Miller was charged with one count of domestic violence, a first-degree misdemeanor punishable with up to six months in jail.
According to allegations, John Miller is the biological father of a 13-year-old child whom his wife Katrina adopted. The Millers also have a three-year-old child in the home. According to allegations, the 13-year-old child had been held in the home without proper food for a long period of time.
The boy escaped the home and went to another home for help. Occupants of that home alerted police and the child was taken immediately for medical treatment. The child was allegedly only allowed a bowl of grapes and almonds to eat. The child was severely mal-nourished weighing only 65 pounds.
It was also revealed that some years ago, the child was diagnosed with leukemia. However, his parents did not follow-up with Children’s Hospital for treatment for the boy, who was home schooled.
The child was sent Children’s Hospital in Columbus, where he was expected to be a patient for some time while his diet could be adjusted.
At home, the child was only allowed to attend church. Cameras were posted in the home to make sure there were no attempts to get food other than the grapes and almonds. The couple’s three-year-old child was showing less severe signs of malnutrition and was removed from the home as well. The additional domestic violence charge stems from when the father assaulted his son after a previous escape attempt.
Common Pleas Court Judge Sean Leuthold said both sides had expressed interest in combining the cases. Katrina Miller is represented by attorney Sebastian Berger and John Miller is represented by attorney Andrew Motter.
Leuthold told both lawyers to look carefully at case law regarding the joining of cases. He noted that the defense attorneys had discussed agreeing to certain stipulations being put on record regarding the joining of the cases.
“Read the case laws very carefully,” Leuthold said. “There are a lot of overriding concerns that may make it impossible to try these cases together.”
The attorneys asked the court if they could meet with their clients together to discuss the case. Leuthold said he would lift the no contact order so the couple could meet together, with their attorneys, for one hour.
“This visit will be at the jail’s discretion,” Leuthold said. “They will evaluate security risks and they make the call on this.”
Leuthold said that he would give both sides a chance to meet and schedule a hearing to determine if the cases could be joined.
In other business, it came to the court’s attention that the couple were sending letters to one another through the laundry thereby violating the no contact order.
“I don’t like it when my orders are thwarted. A note was intercepted, and I am not happy about that,” Leuthold said. “These sneaky tricks with the laundry are going to stop. Now that the jail has discovered this, I’m sure they will take measures to make sure it won’t happen again. When you can’t follow my orders when you’re in jail, it makes me very concerned that down the road you won’t be able to obey them if you’re not in jail. Knock this nonsense off.”