Jackie FarahThe way police are describing the conditions in a home where they found 19 kids living alone this week make me want to cry. Kentucky authorities say the home where the kids were alone for a week had dog feces an inch thick on the floor of one room. The youngest child was 8 months, the oldest only 14 years old. And to top it off? The area was going through a heat wave, but the kids had no air conditioning.
How much worse could it get for these poor kids? Wait, don't answer that. The reports out of Kentucky are already pushing me to my limit.
To be honest, the whole story of how all 19 kids ended up alone is hard to understand -- and not just because most of us wouldn't leave a dog alone in such conditions (although these kids were allegedly left with nine dogs plus a cat!).
The latest allegations include the arrest of a woman named Jackie Farah, a 32-year-old who seems to be the mother of at least some of the kids. Police have charged Farah with 14 counts of criminal abuse and five counts of wanton endangerment. They say that she and a man named Irving "Joe" Smith left town for a "family emergency" right in the middle of the heat wave, leaving behind the 13 kids who live in the house plus six cousins who were visiting for the summer.
If what police allege turns out to be true, think about this: they had to know what it was going to be like in that house. Leaving a 14-year-old in charge of 18 younger kids would be bordering on insane in any situation -- I don't care how responsible the 14-year-old is. But then you just keep adding in the awful factors, and you throw the heat on top of it?
I can't think of a single excuse for doing this to a human being, period. Doing this to children? That's just plain cruel.
What part of this story just set you over the edge?
Image via Warren County Sheriff's Office
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Comments 113
OH MY FLOCKING GOODNESS! WTF was in her head?! I have 3 children and my youngest is almost 14 and I never, ever, left my older 2 in charge for an hour let alone for days! I have 2 dogs and 3 cats and I make sure they have water and all that! I am suffering from the heat du to health issues, I couldn't imagine what those poor children were going through! I understand " family emergencies" BUT TO LEAVE ALL THOSE CHILDREN BEHIND IN THOSE CONDITIONS DURING A HEATWAVE?! The so called " mother" of some fo those children needs to be hidden away in a dark, dirty cell somewheres without and cool air! It's just don't right appalling to read a story like this! She is the type of " woman" that shouldn't have children at all! My heart and prayers go out to all those poor children, may god bless them all.
This story disgusted me and there is no excuse, let her fry! YOU NEVER LEAVE your children for more than a couple hours and you NEVER leave that many in the care of a 14yr old! Poor kids.. it's sad when the people who are suppose to care for you and protect you fail so drastically!
Hopefully they take them away for good. To many times the children are only removed for a short period of time.
This is why we should force people like this to be sterilized!
Totally unbelievable! It's hard to wrap my mind around what the 14 yr. old had to endur, until help came. This woman, from her picture looks like she's possibly a drug adddict., and doesn't have any idea what to do with all these children. There is never that bad of an emergency to leave all your children alone in such horrible, and vile conditions. Also, to take in 6 more children of relatives. Those 6 children were able to deal with this? Really? I bet there wasn't any electric, so no AC's could even run, no telephone, so how could they possibly call for help, and no food, b/c the fridge doesn't run w/o electric. The dog poop on the floor with an 8 month old, and the diseases that they could get deathly sick from. Didn't any of this make the woman think this isn't normal. She definitely needs help, and the parents of the kids visiting as well. They should also be charged with animal neglet.