![]() ![]() Each time we went around another boulder I’d see the highway wasn’t there and I felt I couldn’t go on.” Through it all, “Jim kept up the faith,” Jennifer Stolpa said. They tried to soothe the crying baby by placing him inside a garment bag, attaching it to his father’s belt and dragging him like a sled. They trudged eastward, hoping to reach a highway. “We had to decide whether to stay put and die or do something and die,” James Stolpa said Thursday. Clayton was bundled in several layers of clothing and a sleeping bag, and the adults wore sweat shirts and coats-but only tennis shoes on their feet. On Sunday morning, the family set out on foot in waist-high snowdrifts. With only the fruitcake, cookies and some prenatal vitamins as nourishment, the Stolpas grew desperate. They waited four more days, and not a soul came by, though they heard planes overhead. Enveloped in a blizzard, the couple decided to remain in their truck, hoping that another motorist would pass. 29 in deep snowdrifts east of Vya, Nev., a virtual ghost town. The Stolpas’ Dodge pickup became stuck the night of Dec. They decided to drive north on Interstate 5 to Redding, follow California 299 east through the mountains into Nevada, and use County 8-A-known by locals to be unpaved and closed in winter-to link up with Nevada Route 140. Highway 50-the two major highways through the Sierra-were closed by snow, they consulted their map and sought suggestions for alternate routes at several convenience stores. When they learned that Interstate 80 and U.S. 29, heading for his grandmother’s funeral in Pocatello, Ida. They appeared exhausted, their mood was somber and their eyes filled with tears as they recalled some of the more frightening moments of the past week.Īccording to James Stolpa, the family left the Bay Area on Dec. Then his father would urinate on him.The family was taken Thursday by ambulance convoy to Reno, where a plastic surgeon and frostbite specialists awaited the Stolpas at Washoe County Medical Center.Īs they recounted their saga before leaving Cedarville, both Stolpas had their feet thickly wrapped in blankets. His stepmother punished him by rubbing his own feces in his face. When Clayton could no longer hold his bodily functions, he was forced to go to the bathroom on himself. His tiny neck and chest bore scars from the wire and chains cutting into his bare skin. He stood for hours on end, even while sleeping. Inside the closet, Clayton was bound in wire fencing and chains. While living in a small Indiana town, 6-year-old Clayton was terrorized by the very people who were supposed to protect and care for him-his father, Joseph, and stepmother, Carmen.įor months, Clayton was locked inside an airless, dark bathroom closet, often for 24 hours at a time. Now, that little boy, Clayton, is 19 years old and coming forward in hopes that his story will help save another child from abuse. Back then, the show couldn't say his name or show his face. It's the heinous child abuse case The Oprah Show first told in 2000. You're 6 years old, and your parents have done this to you. Imagine what it would be like to be locked inside a closet 2 by 2 feet wide, your body wrapped in a wire fence and bound by chains like an animal for hours-even days-at a time. TORTURED BY HIS OWN FAMILY: THE SIX-YEAR-OLD CHAINED IN A CLOSETĪt age 6, his father and stepmother locked him inside a bathroom closet, his tiny body wrapped in a wire fence and bound by chains like an animal. ![]() This makes me think of Zahra Baker and so many others that were not able to be rescued even when there were reports of abuse. ![]() Clayton is now 19 years old and this sheriff took it upon himself and his gut feeling to save this child. Prime example of why CPS reports should be followed up by visits from law enforcement who have the power to intervene and get the truth. Clayton's life of torture and horrific abuse (perhaps death) was saved by the sheriff, ignored by children's services. The following is a story that was on Oprah about a little boy that was abused and chained in a closet. ![]()
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