The SIMONS-TITTLE Children - 7-13 yo - Washington Cty/ Johnson City TN

The mother and father accused of making their children live in unsanitary conditions are scheduled to be in court this morning.

Robert Simons and Mary Tittle are accused of what authorities call one of the worst child abuse cases in the history of Washington County, Tennessee.

They say the couple's five children were living in deplorable conditions and couldn't read or write.


They were seven to 13-years-old and were placed in foster care.

http://www.wcyb.com/news/30548829/detail.html

Pictures illustrate living conditions of children in Simons, Tittle case


Pictures illustrate living conditions of children in Simons... (Added: February 29, 2012)


WASHINGTON COUNTY, Tenn. --

Today in court, 160 pictures opened jurors' eyes about the
places five children called home. Places investigators said were also
home to a terrible stench, filthy living conditions and scurrying
animals.

The aggravated child neglect trials of Mary Tittle and Robert Simons
continued today in Jonesborough. Washington County investigators
arrested the pair in April 2010. Their kids now live in a foster home.


Leona Bentler and her daughter only lived with Simons and Tittle for
four months, but it was long enough to leave a lasting impression.

"It stunk, the kids didn't like sleeping it,” said Bentler.

Bentler struggled to relive that time for jurors. She moved in
looking for a fresh start, but said the property was anything but fresh
despite her best efforts to try and clean it.

"It seemed like the harder I tried, the harder it got,” said Bentler.

Some 160 pictures snapped by Washington County Sheriff’s Office lead investigator Jared Taylor illustrated the mess.

"I didn't want to go under there, I assure you, I had heard plenty of
things scurrying about and I didn't want to meet face to face,” said
Taylor.

He said the living conditions included cable TV, but no running water. The conditions of the kids had him even more concerned.

"Just extremely dirty, none of them are clean,” said Taylor. "She's dirty, she is also jaundiced."

Taylor said Simons and Tittle's only daughter also stuck out for another reason.

"She has a lot of discoloration, her ear we were really concerned about the blackness in there,” said Taylor.

"It was dirty, now what I'm used to,” said Bentler.

Bentler said she loved those kids, but was too scared of their father
to ever do anything that could have really helped them escape.

"The refrigerator was really nasty, it had grime and dirt and mice feces,” said Bentler.

You may remember I interviewed Bentler the day she was released from jail back in 2010.

In return for her testimony, she received a plea deal. On that day
she told me she regretted not calling 911, because of that she is now
homeless and her daughter is in a foster home. She only gets to see her
an hour a week.

How did defense attorneys respond to the pictures?

They reminded the jury, the parents weren't on drugs and their kids were fed and had places to sleep.

http://www2.tricities.com/news/2012/feb/29/pictures-illustrate-living-conditions-children-sim-ar-1730639/

Trial testimony: Foster dad says Simons-Tittle children did not know how to use bathroom

Published March 2, 2012
By Becky Campbell - Press Staff Writer

A
jury hearing testimony in a multi-count child neglect case was
dismissed for the weekend around noon Friday because of weather that
threatened heavy storms and possible tornados.

Robert Simons III, 55, and Mary Ella Tittle, 39, of Jonesborough,
are charged with a total of eight counts of aggravated child neglect,
five that involve a child age 8 or younger and three involving a child
under 18 years old.

Criminal Court Judge Robert Cupp recessed the case for lunch
around 12:15 p.m., but called attorneys back to the courtroom within a
few minutes. He decided to follow the lead of the Washington County
school system, which had announced students would be released due to the
weather.

Prior to the break, jurors heard testimony from the foster dad of
the Simons’ five children. Junior Jordan testified taking on the kids
was a challenge and the children had many things to learn.

When the kids first arrived, Jordan said they smelled of urine,
an odor that took about two weeks worth of baths to get rid of. The kids
new their first names, but still didn’t know their last name.

Apparently along the way, someone pronounced Simons as Simmons, so that’s how the children learned to say their last name.

Baths were difficult at first because none of the kids wanted any part of it.

“None of them wanted their head washed . . . they started screaming,” Jordan said.

Using the bathroom was also a challenge for the boys, he said. He
had to sit them down and talk about how to properly go to the bathroom
so they actually urinated in the toilet.

One day, Jordan testified, he almost stepped in a pile of human
waste in the yard, so that required another lesson on bathroom
etiquette.

Eating utensils and tooth brushes were also new to the kids, he said, and they had to learn how to use them.

Fast forward two years, and Jordan said the kids have improve dramatically.

“These kids are so nice and polite now,” Jordan said.

They follow a routine that includes making their beds, putting
their shoes and clothes away and eating their meals within a certain
amount of time. At first, the kids just wanted to play at mealtime,
Jordan said. A timer on the table helped with the kids learning that
meals were only on the table for a certain amount of time.

On one occasion, one of the boys had a bicycle wreck but hid from
Jordan and his wife. Jordan said he had to pull the boy out from under
his bed to check for injuries.

“He was afraid I was going to do something to him,” Jordan said.

The Simons children went to live with the Jordans in Hamblen
County in April 2010 after being removed from their parents home. Simons
and Tittle were arrested after authorities went to their home to
investigate a complaint about unsupervised children not attending
school.

DCS and a sheriff’s investigator found filthy living conditions
and determined the children were not receiving an education. There were
also medical concerns for the couple’s daughter who suffered from a
life-threatening kidney disease.

The girl has since had a kidney transplant that doctors testified earlier this week saved her life.

Simons and Tittle remain jailed on a $50,000 bond each. The trial is scheduled to resume Monday morning.


http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/News/article.php?id=98713#ixzz1o5z0m319