Jefferson City couple charged with child abuse after poor living conditions observed
Ryan Shiner
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A Jefferson City couple was charged with child abuse after authorities observed poor living conditions at their home on Wednesday.
Criminal summons were requested for Eric and Leslia Biesemeyer on Thursday. Bond was posted for both people and a court date is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 9 at the Cole County Circuit Court.
The probable cause statements says police were called to the 900 block of Moreau Drive after a Missouri Department of Social Services employee depicted poor living conditions at the home.
Trash and other items in the home were “stacked at head height” and animal feces were observed by the DSS employee, the statement says. The home had running water, but the sinks were not accessible, so the couple had been giving Prime energy drinks to the 7-year-old for hydration, the statement says.
Police wrote that inside the home, there was a foot-and-a-half walkway going throughout the residence and some rooms were not accessible because of debris. Trash allegedly fell on Animal Control workers when they went to retrieve the family’s cats.