Sarah Lynette Starr, Jonathan Scott Starr and Shelley Lucille Barnes (Davidson County Sheriff’s Office) and the caged area where the victim was kept (WGHP screenshot)
A 30-year-old stepmother in North Carolina will spend at least nine years behind bars after she admitted to forcing her 9-year-old stepson to live outside in a dog cage for several months despite below-freezing temperatures. Superior Court Judge Richard S. Gottlieb on Tuesday harangued Sarah Starr, saying her actions left him “speechless,” before sentencing her to nine to 12 years in a state penitentiary, authorities confirmed to Law&Crime.
Prior to being sentenced, Starr pleaded guilty to three counts of felony negligent child abuse inflicting serious mental and emotional injury, and two counts of felony child abuse inflicting serious physical injury. She had initially been indicted on 10 felony charges and one misdemeanor in the case, but the remaining charges were dropped in light of her plea.
The victim’s father, Jonathan Starr, and Shelly Lucille Barnes, Starr’s aunt and the owner of the home where the abuse took place, were also arrested along with Starr and charged with similar crimes.
When an anonymous woman tipped off police to the child’s horrific conditions on Oct. 19 last year, deputies said they found the boy so cold that he was unable to speak due to the frigid temperature, Charlotte, North Carolina, CBS affiliate WBTV reported.
During the proceedings, Gottlieb launched a bitter diatribe against Starr and the others indicted for abusing the child.
“I wish I could offer solace to the ladies and gentlemen, living with this case. I have seen murders and rapes; I deal with all sorts of horrific abuses,” he said, according to Greensboro, North Carolina, CBS affiliate WFMY-TV. When I get angry, I get emotional. Clearly, that’s the case now. I’ve never seen or experienced something quite so horrific. As a parent, I am horrified. I am speechless. This will haunt me for the rest of my judicial career.”
The assistant district attorney prosecuting the case similarly said that it was the worst abuse case she had ever seen, per WFMY.
Deputies with the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office at about 6:50 a.m. on Oct. 19, 2022, responded to an anonymous tip regarding a child locked in a dog kennel at a home located in the 100 block of Cress Road in Lexington, the agency said in a press release. Upon arriving at the scene, first responders immediately located the boy inside the cage, which was secured with a padlock, and forced entry into the enclosure. The child was rushed to a local emergency room for medical treatment
Read Related Also: MISSING: Terminally-Ill Woman Vanishes in Forest Days Before Another Woman Disappears in Same County
“Due to the exigent circumstances Deputies then forced entry into the residence,” the release stated. “Inside, deputies located one adult female, later identified as Sarah Starr, and two other children inside the residence. These children were also taken to EMS personnel on the scene but had no obvious injuries.”
Two other children who lived at the residence were found safe at school.
According to an arrest report obtained by High Point Fox affiliate WGHP, Starr told authorities that Barnes was the only person who knew the combination to the locked kennel, and claimed she and her husband were “upset” about the victim being kept in such horrid conditions.
The boy reportedly told investigators that he’d been living in the kennel since April 2022 and did not have a place to stay in the house because he “lived outside,” police wrote.
Following the execution of a search warrant on the home, Starr, her husband, and Barnes were all taken into custody and charged with a spate of felonies. Barnes was also charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and maintaining a dwelling place for controlled substances.
Barnes pleaded guilty to two felony counts of negligent child abuse and was sentenced to a minimum of 7 1/2 years in prison. The current status of Jonathan Starr’s case is unclear.
Since being removed from the home, the boy has been living in California with a grandparent where he is “thriving,” WFMY reported.
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
