Child was confined for days without food and restrained with a ratchet strap
MOUNTAIN HOME, AR – A Baxter County judge on Monday sentenced a mother and stepfather to 20 years in prison after authorities uncovered years of abuse involving a 15-year-old boy who was repeatedly locked naked inside a bathroom without food, according to court records.
Jaclyn Machelle Barnett and Daniel Alan Wright each pleaded guilty to multiple felony charges, including first-degree kidnapping, false imprisonment, endangering the welfare of a minor, and abuse of a minor. Baxter County Circuit Judge Andrew Bailey also imposed a seven-year suspended sentence and credited the pair with 194 days already served. Both had been facing more than 100 charges and were scheduled to stand trial this week before entering their pleas.
Prosecutor details years of abuse
During sentencing, Baxter County Prosecuting Attorney David Ethredge described the treatment of the child as severe and prolonged. “For years, these children were abused, manipulated, and exploited,” Ethredge said. “Rather than providing love, safety, and protection, these defendants chose greed and self-interest.”
Judge Bailey called the outcome a “sad day for our city and our state,” and noted the case prompted broader scrutiny of state systems. “A statewide effort to address the failure of the Department of Human Services” had been launched, he said, referencing reports that the agency had received at least 29 prior calls about the child dating back to 2013.
Police uncover conditions inside apartment
The case came to light on Nov. 2, 2024, when a downstairs neighbor reported hearing what sounded like a child crying for help from an upstairs apartment. Responding officers with the Mountain Home Police Department encountered two children, ages 10 and 11, who initially denied anyone was locked inside the bathroom.
Investigators later said the children appeared to have been coached. “It’s in my opinion, it’s in the opinion of some others as well, that these kids are no doubt coached, no doubt,” lead investigator Mike Day said. “Whether it be fear for themselves or what have you.”
Officers ultimately located a ratchet strap attached from a bedpost to the bathroom door, preventing it from being opened. “The sergeant talked to the child behind the door, eventually let him out, and he discovered the child was in there with no clothes,” Day said. “The child didn’t want to come out because he was embarrassed, because he had no clothes. He hadn’t eaten. He was hungry.”
Investigators said the boy reported being locked in the bathroom regularly, allowed out only to attend school. While other children in the home slept in beds, the victim slept on a wooden pallet inside the bathroom.
Charging decisions tied to school attendance
Authorities said Barnett and Wright initially denied knowledge of the situation, blaming the other children before later claiming the strap was used to keep the bathroom door shut due to a leaky faucet. Investigators rejected those explanations after determining the younger children could not operate the strap.
Day said prosecutors based dozens of charges on the number of school days the child attended in 2024. “We know with the child stating in his forensic interview that he was held in this bathroom with no lights, no food every night, but he’s let out to go to school,” he said. “So that being he was let out and he’s put back, then he’s let out and he’s put back.”
“So that’s how we did it based on those numbers,” Day added, explaining how investigators calculated at least 112 instances tied to school attendance before the child was found.