Young children exposed to decomposed animals on Warren County property; couple charged

NEW JERSEY -- A couple allowed two young children to be exposed to numerous decomposed animals on an Independence Township property where they also lived with inadequate heat and hot water, the Warren County Prosecutor's Office says.

Chad J. Lloyd, 36, and Kimberly Brown, 23, are charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of children, the office says. They lived in a home with the children in the first block of Russling Road.

 

The prosecutor's office did not disclose their relationship with the children -- 3 and 10 -- but identified them as having "the legal duty for the care of the two children."

Independence Township police began investigating Lloyd and Brown after responding to a report last Wednesday of five pigs running loose in their neighborhood. Police and animal control officers captured the pigs and confirmed the couple owned them.

Police discovered the conditions of the home when they returned the pigs, according to the prosecutor's office.

"Numerous animals in various states of decomposition were discovered on the property," a statement from the office says. "Specifically ... the children had access to various deceased animals, some of which are located as close as three to six feet from the residence."

The statement says the suspects had also failed to provide the children with adequate heat and hot water since February.

Lloyd and Brown were both released on their own recognizance. As a condition of their release, they must comply with all New Jersey Department of Child Protection and Permanency requirements. It was not immediately clear who is currently caring for the children.

The SPCA is involved in the investigation, but the statement from the prosecutor's office did not indicate if any charges are being considered in connection with the animals on the property.

An SPCA spokesman on Tuesday confirmed that live animals were taken from the property, but didn't immediately have additional details. He said the agency would be releasing a statement later in the day.

The Barnyard Sanctuary, based in Knowlton Township, said it is caring for animals seized from the property, but referred questions about the case to the SPCA.

Efforts to reach the suspects on Tuesday were unsuccessful. A phone number listed for Lloyd was disconnected. Brown did not have a listed number.

(lehighvalleylive.com - April 7, 2015)