Child abuse charges for Pontiac mom who abandoned three kids in squalor for four years

PONTIAC, Mich. (FOX 2) - The Oakland County Prosecutor has filed three counts of child abuse charges against a Pontiac mom who abandoned three kids in a home full of trash and feces for over four years.

Prosecutor Karen McDonald called a 2 p.m. press conference on Wednesday where she announced the charges against Kelli Bryant, the 34-year-old mother of the three children.

The case against the 34-year-old mother, who was not name prior to the press conference, given to the prosecutor's office on Monday for review. 

Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard spoke on Tuesday and said the three kids lived alone since late spring or early summer of 2020 - the height of the COVID pandemic.

What we know:

Bryant was charged with three felony counts of first degree child abuse. Each charge carries a maximum jail time of life in prison. 

"The three children in this case suffered unimaginable abuse and neglect over a long period of time," McDonald said on Wednesday. "Police were astonished to find anyone in the location because it appeared to be uninhabitable with piles of garbage and refuse several feet high, including large amounts of human excrement."

Law enforcement were called to the home to check on Bryant, at the request of the home owner. Instead, Bryant wasn't living there and there were three kids were there alone.

McDonald said Bryant lived at the home in 2019 and moved out in 2020 with one of her children, leaving the other three behind.

During that time, McDonald said the children all had cell phones but were instructed to never open the door or leave the home.

"During his interview, her son stated that he would text their mother when their food supply was running low and she would have food delivered to the residence. The children shared that during the years they were concealed in the home, so the suspect, Bryant, failed to provide toilet paper, soap or shampoo," McDonald said. "The defendant instructed the kids that they were not to answer the door or leave the house. All three children expressed fear about what their mother's response would be if they left the home."

McDonald said the children are living with a relative while in the care of the Department of Health and Human Services. She said the family is expressing a desire for privacy. She also said that the investigation has not found reason to charge anyone else.

But that doesn't mean nobody else is to blame.

"Morally, there is plenty of responsibility to go around for how this was allowed to happen. However, these three kids were entrusted to the care of their mother, Kelli Bryant. And the evidence suggests that she effectively abandoned them to a revolting pit of refuse and squalor," she said.

In nearly five years of living alone, Bouchard said the now 15-year-old boy was the only one of the three children to leave the home, which he did twice.

"Once because he wanted to feel the grass, which by itself is heartbreaking, and once because he wanted to check the mail," Bouchard said.

The sheriff said the children's father was in jail around the time that their mother abandoned them. Upon release, he was granted approval to visit his kids, but their mother never allowed him access.

Bouchard said gaps in school enrollment allowed the children to slip through the cracks – likely exacerbated by the pandemic.

"Right now, there is no specific duty required that is triggered by certain actions," Bouchard said. "The school district in this case received request of records from another school in Pontiac but there was no verification that the children ever moved to that school."

He said nobody knew that the children weren't in the school. Bouchard said they're working with state lawmakers to get a bill introduced to fix such a gap.

"There's gotta be some accountability to make sure tha kids don't fall through the cracks in some way," he said.

The three children were found living alone last Friday and surrounded by garbage and feces. The oldest, a 15-year-old boy, lived with his two sisters, ages 13 and 12. They survived off of food that was dropped off once a week by either their mother or a stranger.

Bouchard clarified on Tuesday that the stranger was from a food delivery service, like DoorDash, and their mother's last drop off of hygiene-related items was in 2020.

"(Their) mother dropped off some trash bags, gloves, and Febreze and that was the last thing related to hygiene," he said. 

At one point, the children were sharing a loaf of bread as their only form of sustenance.

"Towards the end, the children were getting a loaf of bread that was getting dropped off and that was to last 3 or 4 days," he said.

Big picture view:

After news of the kids' story broke, the sheriff said the department was overwhelmed by the support from the community and said they did not need any more donations. Bouchard added the department hoped to find a law firm to set up a trust fund for the kids to pay for health and education bills.

He shared photos of the donations – which filled rooms and tables, which he said was just a small amount of the donations they received.

"We have one of the most generous communities, I think, in the world," Bouchard said.

A more detailed appointment looking at their physical and mental health will be done in the near future, but told media Tuesday all three were doing well.

"Having had some tender love, having had some supportive care, having been put in new clothing and some basic hygiene - the one detective said that the little girl was talking quite a bit, so that's super exciting," said Bouchard.

What we don't know:

The mystery behind the mother's reason for abandoning her kids remains. 

Police plan to further investigate and have more questions for her, but said she was answering questions and her background did not indicate any mental health challenges.

Crime and Public SafetyPontiac