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Judge sees couple came a 'long way' in child care case
Times-Tribune - 1/30/2018
Jan. 30--SCRANTON -- Noting that they've "come a long way," a Lackawannna County judge sentenced a West Scranton couple Monday to probation for a criminal charge accusing them of failing to care for their child last year.
Ashley Stoveken DeJesus, 26, stood next to her husband, Jonathan DeJesus, 25, and clutched their young boy as Judge Andy Jarbola sentenced the couple to two years of probation. The child, who was just shy of his second birthday when his parents were arrested in April, was returned to his parents, both of 811 W. Elm St., after they cooperated with the county Office of Youth and Family Services.
"I love my children," Ashley DeJesus said through tears. "More than anything in the world."
On March 7, Ashley DeJesus took her son for an examination. The boy was soon hospitalized because he weighed just 13 pounds, was severely malnourished and was not walking or talking. The child's hospitalization resulted in a Childline referral to the city Police Department's special victims unit.
Police found that the boy had not seen a physician since he was 2 weeks old.
Police charged his parents with felony child endangerment in April. The couple pleaded guilty to recklessly endangering another person, a misdemeanor, on Jan. 19.
On Monday, the child looked alert and healthy in court. Jarbola praised the couple with having matured over the last several months and noted that the boy is thriving.
Circumstances could have been far more grave, he said.
"If this behavior went on ... you could be standing before the court on much more serious charges, like manslaughter," Jarbola said.
The couple must continue to cooperate with the Office of Youth and Family Services as a probation condition. If they violate that condition, they could go to jail.
Contact the writer:
jkohut@timesshamrock.com, 570-348-9144;
@jkohutTT on Twitter
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