Staats couple sentenced to home detention, work release for starving son
From left, Grant County Prosecutor Angus Lee, defense attorney Douglas Phelps, Robert Staats, Michelle Staats and defense attorney Stephen Hormel during a trial earlier this year.
EPHRATA - The Moses Lake couple found guilty in May of starving their son to the brink of death will likely serve six months in home detention and work release.
Michelle Staats, who had a prior conviction in 1999 for possession of a controlled substance, was sentenced to six months confinement. Grant County Superior Court Judge Evan Sperline allowed her to serve the time in home detention while wearing an ankle monitoring device. She will have to pay for the monitoring.
Her husband Robert was also sentenced to six months and will be allowed to serve his time in work release, according to court documents. He had two prior convictions for possession of a controlled substance.
The case came to light in May 2012 when the couple called 9-1-1 because their 2-year-old son went into cardiac arrest. He weighed about 10 pounds and was severely malnourished, according to court documents.
Before that incident, the couple rejected going to conventional doctors or hospitals when their son would not eat solid foods.
They instead turned to a Moses Lake naturopath, who told the couple their son's condition was too serious for her to treat, and told them to take him to a hospital, according to court documents.
They decided to look online and found a San Francisco-based herbalist, who gave the couple advice on treating their son via telephone calls and e-mails, but the boy continued to lose weight, according to previous Columbia Basin Herald articles.
The couple was also ordered to pay $800 in fines and court costs. They will have to report to their work release and home detention on Aug. 15.