Elizabethtown couple accused of beating children with bats and kidnapping them to evade court order
Elizabethtown, PA – A local couple accused of repeatedly beating their six children with baseball bats and other objects will face trial in county court after waiving their preliminary hearings, while the father is also charged with kidnapping the children in an alleged attempt to avoid a court-ordered custody surrender.
Robert John Christensen Jr., 30, and Ashley Nicole Dishart-Christensen, 35, both of the 300 block of West High Street, waived their preliminary hearings on Dec. 1 before Judge Randall Miller. Christensen faces 21 charges and Dishart-Christensen faces 19, including aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children, simple assault, animal cruelty and neglect-related offenses.
According to investigators, six children between the ages of 4 and 11 told the Lancaster County Children’s Alliance they were beaten regularly over several years with baseball bats, hockey sticks and other household items. Police said reports of abuse at the home dated back to 2019.
One of the children, an 11-year-old girl, told police she ran from the home in early August after Dishart-Christensen chased her with a baseball bat. She also reported being struck repeatedly and choked several months earlier.
When police searched the residence in early November, they found the home cluttered, unsanitary and overwhelmed by strong odors of ammonia, feces and urine. Elizabethtown Borough Code Enforcement later condemned the house, declaring it unfit for human occupancy.
Inside the home, officers found two dogs locked in cages covered in feces and urine. Five cats and a rabbit were also recovered. All animals were surrendered to the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, where they were found to be flea-infested and in need of medical treatment. Dishart-Christensen told police the animals had never received veterinary care.
In a separate case, Christensen waived a preliminary hearing on additional charges stemming from allegations that he kidnapped the children on Nov. 5 after a court order required the couple to temporarily surrender custody to Lancaster County Children and Youth Social Service Agency. Police said Christensen left the home with the children more than an hour before officers arrived to enforce the order.
Investigators said Dishart-Christensen attempted to persuade Christensen by phone to return the children, but he allegedly refused and stopped answering calls. State police later located Christensen and the children during a traffic stop in Cambria County, more than 170 miles away, shortly before 11 p.m. All children were recovered safely.
Dishart-Christensen was released after posting $150,000 bail. Christensen remains in Lancaster County Prison in lieu of a combined $425,000 bail. Elizabethtown Borough Police officers Edward Wengiel and Gregory Riehl filed the charges, and Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Lapp will prosecute the cases. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Key Points
- Elizabethtown couple accused of beating six children with bats and household objects
- Home was condemned and multiple animals were removed due to neglect
- Father also charged with kidnapping children to avoid court-ordered custody surrender