16 children allegedly living in single-bathroom home were invisible to neighbors

Background: Law enforcement officials investigate a house on Ohmer Street in Hamden, Ohio (WSYX/YouTube). Insets (clockwise from top right): Gary Siders Jr.; Christina Siders; Elizabeth Siders; Gary Siders Sr. (Vinton County Sheriff's Office).

Four people are behind bars after authorities in Ohio say they found 16 children inside a home with "horrific" conditions.

Gary Siders Jr., Christina Siders, Elizabeth Siders, and Gary Siders Sr. are each charged with 16 counts of second-degree felony child endangerment, authorities including Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson announced at a press conference, regional CBS affiliate WOIO reported.

On Tuesday, the Vinton County Sheriff's Office and the Ohio Bureau of Investigation executed a search warrant at a house on the 100 block of Ohmer Street in Hamden, Ohio. Hamden is a small village in the southern part of the state.

There were 16 children inside the home, ranging in age from 18 months to 18 years old, The Columbus Dispatch reported. Records reviewed by the newspaper from the county auditor's office show that the one-story home built in 1900 had five rooms and one bathroom.

Authorities said "the scene is horrific, and these are horrific allegations," though they did not share specific details because it is an "ongoing investigation." The sheriff's office did concede that the alleged child endangerment involved "serious physical harm."

Deputies said on Tuesday that the children were being treated medically, "and we're trying to get them placed, and that is our primary concern right at this point." They also noted that the defendants are not from Vinton County.

"This is pure evil," Wilson said at the press conference. "This probably was the worst scene that I've been in, as far as the deplorable conditions."

Nearby residents told local ABC affiliate WSYX that they heard there were multiple animals inside the home, too. One noted that he frequents the area and had never seen a child.

"I come up down through here all the time and I've never seen a kid out here," Larry Brown said.

Law enforcement reportedly indicated that this is not a case of human trafficking.

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Man pulled into Walmart and was dying 2 minutes later after random confrontation

Inset left: Taquiza Johnson (Platte County Detention Center). Inset right: Ronald Barnett (Obituary). Background: A Walmart in Kansas City, Mo. (Google Maps).

A former officer with the Kansas City Police Department (KCPD) is facing life in prison after shooting and killing a septuagenarian man outside a Walmart.

Last week, Taquiza Johnson, 49, was found guilty by a jury in Platte County, Missouri, on one count of second-degree murder and armed criminal action over the death of 71-year-old Ronald Barnett in August 2024.

The jury that returned the verdict also suggested a life sentence. Though the judge is not necessarily bound by that recommendation, the jury's suggestion is likely to be given substantial weight.

Now, the victim's family says it is "pleased" with the jury opting for the greatest possible sentence under Show-Me State law, according to a report by The Kansas City Star.

The family's elation with the prospective punishment, however, reportedly came as the silver lining to the general "shock" that the verdict was relatively favorable to the defendant. Johnson also faced a first-degree murder charge, and the victim's daughter told the local paper that the family had expected a conviction on that more serious count.

The underlying incident occurred on Aug. 21, 2024, in the parking lot of the Walmart near the Shops at Boardwalk shopping mall located at Northwest Barry Road and North Boardwalk Avenue.

Surveillance camera footage showed the defendant leaving the big-box store and going through the crosswalk where Barnett was driving before Johnson extended his arm toward the vehicle, according to court documents obtained by Kansas City-based Fox affiliate WDAF.

In the footage, Barnett then reverses, stops, and gets out of his vehicle. Then, Johnson is seen walking over to the victim. The footage then shows the two men interacting for roughly 20 seconds before both men return to their respective vehicles.

After that, Barnett is seen parking and getting out of his vehicle and walking toward the Walmart entrance. Meanwhile, the footage shows Johnson driving toward the victim, getting out of his vehicle, walking toward Barnett, then shooting the man once before fleeing the scene.

The entire incident occurred in less than two minutes, according to the charging documents. After the shooting, Barnett was taken to a local hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

Within 10 minutes, Missouri Highway Patrol troopers found Johnson's vehicle at a nearby apartment complex and arrested him after he had allegedly changed his clothes, authorities said.

At the time of the shooting, the defendant was not a member of law enforcement. He worked for the KCPD between 2004 and 2014.

Barnett is survived by four children, 11 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, and five siblings, according to his obituary.

During the lengthy legal process, the victim's family learned Barnett faced long wait times in the aftermath of the initial 911 call and was transferred to various emergency response teams, the Star reported.

"That's just crazy to me and our family," Barnett's daughter told the paper. "But outside of that, I think we're pleased with what the jury did eventually come back with, with life in prison."

During the trial, Johnson's defense mounted a failed self-defense argument, claiming the shooter was only defending himself because the victim had previously threatened him during their brief parking lot interaction. On the witness stand, however, Johnson admitted Barnett was not armed and that he did not see a weapon of any kind.

"The instruction on self-defense in Missouri is clear," Platte County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Zahnd said in a press release. "Verbal threats are not enough. Name-calling is not enough. A person claiming self-defense must establish that the perceived aggressor possessed, exhibited, or threatened to use a weapon readily capable of lethal force. Deadly force is not justified in response to fear of being grabbed or even punched. The old axiom is true — you cannot bring a gun to a fist-fight."

Johnson is slated to be formally sentenced on Sept. 14.

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