Mother of Boy Locked in Closet Has Abusive History

There are new questions surrounding the woman accused of locking her son in a closet and abusing him for years. Her oldest daughter is also speaking about the alleged&nbsp;abuse of her younger brother. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.news9.com/global/Story.asp?s=11227295" target="_self">New Details Released in Case of Teen Locked in Closet</a>

Friday, October 2nd 2009, 8:00 pm

By: News 9


By Dave Jordan, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- There are new questions surrounding the woman accused of locking her son in a closet and abusing him for years. Her oldest daughter is also speaking about the abuse of her younger brother.

In 1996, 37-year-old LaRhonda McCall pleaded guilty to manslaughter for starving her two-year-old daughter to death, but she was sentenced for only six months.

Jaleasa McCall, 18, said she saw her mother beat her brother on several occasions since moving to Oklahoma in 2007.

She said she was scared of her mother's temper which is why she never reported the beatings.

Court records from New York State Supreme Court show La Rhonda McCall, who at the time went by the last name Pressley, pled guilty to second-degree manslaughter in 1996 in the case of her 2-year-old daughter Ciara. Prosecutors said McCall “continuously failed to provide adequate nutrition to Ciara, thereby causing her death.”

It's the same allegation McCall faces in Oklahoma after investigators said she starved and beat her 14-year-old son for years.

“It's real sad that someone didn't follow up, and I'm not blaming any agency. But this is one of those things that because of her changing states and moving from New York to Oklahoma has slipped through the cracks,” said NEWS 9 legal analyst Irven Box.

Court documents reveal that McCall was pregnant, apparently with twins at the time of the plea agreement. The court order stipulated that she turn over her children to the state for placement in foster care.

McCall moved to Oklahoma City after her probation ended in 2001.

Irven Box reviewed the court’s rulings. He believes McCall would have received a heavier sentence if the court were able to prove she deliberately starved her child.

“Didn't fit the category of being a murder in the first degree or a deliberating taking of a life it's just through her not doing what she's supposed to do the child died,” Box said.

Prosecutors will likely argue that McCall's past history is relevant to this case.

“It's something I think a DA would certainly use to try and increase the punishment,” Box said.

Prosecutors said they have not yet received the case file. Typically they have 10 days after an arrest to file charges, but McCall and her friend Steve Hamilton are each facing 20 counts of child abuse and child neglect so it's likely prosecutors will get an extension.

Both McCall and Hamilton are each being held on a $400,000 bond.

More on News9.com:

- Teen Claims He Was Locked In Closet For 4 Years 
- New Details Released in Case of Teen Locked in Closet

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