VANCOUVER, Wash. -- The biological mother of two children with autism rescued from what police called a prison in their own home is seeking custody of the young boys.
The boys' father, John Eckhart, 30, and girlfriend Alayna Higdon, 26, were arrested after police went inside their Vancouver apartment April 12 on accusations of child mistreatment and unlawful imprisonment domestic violence.
The door to the boys' bedroom had been replaced by closet shelves fashioned into a lockable double-door and bolted to the door frame like a cage. Investigators said the room reeked of urine and had scratches on the walls.
Maintenance workers who had alerted police after seeing the deplorable conditions during an apartment inspection both said a window track was covered in spit from the two young boys, who were wailing at times.
Plywood covered what Eckhart said were holes in the wall made by the boys, ages six and seven, who do not speak. The children shared one small bed, with no blankets, sheets or pillows.
Background: Affidavit describes boys caged in room
During the investigation, the two boys with autism were taken into custody by state social workers, along with two other children in the home. While in state care, the boys will undergo mental and physical evaluations, officials said, and may be enrolled in school for the first time.
The children's biological mother, Jona Bronson, has visited the children while they have been in state custody and indicated in court Thursday that she would like custody of them.
But the family court judge said Thursday that the children would remain in custody until June, when their father's trial was set to begin.
The mother would then need to begin the process to move the boys from Washington state to Oregon, because she lives in Tillamook.
KGW Reporter Collette Wieland contributed to this report
