Bradford County Mom Pleads Guilty to Keeping Disabled Daughter in a Cage

A Bradford County, Pennsylvania woman is admitting to keeping her disabled, 12-year-old daughter locked in a cage and closet since she was ten.

49 year old Mary Beth Frankenfield of Dushore pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charge of child endangerment and will be sentenced November 25^th.

There’s no word on the legal status of the woman’s husband, 55 year old Richard Frankenfield.

The registered sex offender was also implicated in the case in June, telling State Police he was aware the girl, who suffers from cerebral palsy, was locked in the cage at night, claiming it was for her own protection.

State Police were alerted to suspicions of child abuse by the Bradford County Children and Youth Services.

The girl told police she was held in a cage made of parts of a baby crib and plywood with a lock on it for almost a year.

Her parents then reportedly moved her to their bedroom closet, calling it her bedroom, and putting on a doorknob that could only be unlocked from the outside.

The child told police she had a mattress and some toys in the closet where she stayed at night and several hours during the day while the parents were at work.

The parents had originally been charged in June with counts of false imprisonment and endangering the welfare of a child.

After the parents were arrested, the girl and siblings were turned over to relatives.