Investigators say children at an Etna Township property described prolonged physical punishments, restricted access to food and cameras allegedly positioned to monitor them. Newly released records show that authorities had previously responded to concerns involving the household, raising questions about what was known before the children were removed.

A school counselor in central Ohio had been making sure two brothers received breakfast, lunch and snacks during the school day. Outside the classroom, according to allegations later documented by investigators, the children were living in a household where food could be restricted and punishment sometimes involved holding painful positions against a wall for extended periods.

One child described nails positioned near his feet to prevent him from shifting his weight during those punishments. He also reported that cameras faced the wall where children were required to stand. Another child reportedly became so frightened when a child protective services worker asked about the punishments that he began crying and left the interview.

Those accounts were among the allegations that prompted authorities to remove nine children, ages 1 to 13, from a property on National Road SW in Etna Township, Ohio, in October 2026. Jonathan Parr, 37, and Jacquelyn Coleman, 32, were subsequently charged with felony child endangerment.

The investigation initially drew attention because of the conditions deputies described inside the property, including extensive insect infestations, inadequate sleeping arrangements and allegations that children had been confined behind barriers made from cage-like materials. But records released in the days following the arrests revealed a broader history involving the household.

Law enforcement had responded to at least 17 calls involving the property or its occupants since 2018, according to records reviewed by NBC4. Two of those calls concerned the children. Deputies had conducted a welfare check in October 2023, a child had required emergency medical treatment in January 2024, and Franklin County Children’s Services confirmed that it had previously investigated the family.

The criminal complaint identifies April 6, 2023, through October 13, 2026, as the alleged period of conduct. Although that date range does not establish that every alleged act occurred continuously, it overlaps with several of the earlier encounters involving authorities.

Together, the records raise questions about the children’s circumstances before the October intervention and whether information gathered during earlier contacts could have prompted additional scrutiny.

The allegations that brought investigators to the home

The investigation began after a local school district raised concerns with Licking County Child Protective Services, which referred the matter to the sheriff’s office. Interviews with children in the household produced allegations of physical punishment, restricted access to food and unsafe living conditions.

According to a ten-page investigative report obtained by Law&Crime and described in local reporting, one child told investigators that Parr required children to perform wall squats, sometimes for hours at a time. The child described nails positioned between or near the children’s feet to prevent them from moving during the punishment. He also alleged that cameras had been installed facing the wall where the punishments took place.

The reported presence of cameras is potentially significant because recordings, if they exist, could help investigators establish whether the punishments occurred as described. However, the publicly available reporting does not confirm that investigators recovered footage or that any recordings of the alleged punishments exist.

Children also described restrictions on food and the use of barriers to prevent them from accessing parts of the residence. According to reporting on the investigative documents, Coleman acknowledged that sections of a dog cage had been used to block two children from reaching the refrigerator at night.

The sheriff’s office later clarified that deputies had not discovered children physically locked inside conventional animal cages. Instead, investigators described folding cage-like materials positioned across a doorway. That distinction is important when evaluating the allegations, although it does not resolve whether children were improperly confined or denied access to food.

Investigators also documented differences among the children’s accounts. At least one child reportedly denied experiencing abuse, while others described punishments and restrictions. Those inconsistencies will be among the issues prosecutors must address as the criminal case proceeds.

One interview was particularly troubling. According to reporting on the investigative report, a child protective services worker asked a boy about the wall-squat punishments. The child reportedly became frightened, began crying and said he could not discuss what had happened before leaving the room. Another child expressed concern about Parr learning what he had told investigators.

Those reactions do not independently establish that abuse occurred, but they were part of the information authorities documented during the investigation.

The records also describe a school counselor who had been ensuring that two brothers received meals and snacks during the school day. The reporting does not establish whether the children had been medically diagnosed with malnutrition or whether the counselor had previously filed a formal abuse report. Nevertheless, the account indicates that concerns about the children’s access to food extended beyond the household.

Conditions discovered during the search

On October 13, 2026, authorities intervened at the property following the child protective services referral. Investigators obtained a search warrant and documented conditions they described as unsafe and unsanitary.

According to the Licking County Sheriff’s Office, twelve people were living on the property, including nine children and three adults. Four children reportedly lived in an adjoining shed with Parr and Coleman, while five lived in the mobile home with a grandmother.

That arrangement differs from some early descriptions suggesting that children had been sleeping alone in an outbuilding. The fuller reporting indicates that adults also occupied the shed.

Inside the property, deputies encountered extensive insect infestations, including cockroaches, as well as inadequate sleeping arrangements and unsanitary living spaces. Investigators described a filthy bathroom, dirty dishes accumulated in the shower and insects throughout the residence. Firearms were reportedly found near areas used by children for sleeping.

Captain Jay Cook of the Licking County Sheriff’s Office publicly described the conditions as horrific.

Investigators also collected potential evidence, including an iPhone, a tablet and firearms. The electronic devices may be relevant to the investigation, particularly given the allegations involving cameras, but authorities have not publicly confirmed whether they contained recordings or other material corroborating the children’s statements.

All nine children were placed in emergency protective custody. Three dogs were also removed from the property during the operation.

Parr and Coleman were arrested and charged with third-degree felony child endangerment. Both were initially held on bonds of $150,000.

The defendants’ accounts

The investigative records and subsequent court proceedings contain statements from both defendants that differ in significant respects from the children’s allegations.

Parr reportedly acknowledged using standing punishments but disputed the children’s descriptions of their severity and duration. According to NBC4’s review of the investigative report, he described the punishments as lasting approximately five to ten minutes and denied placing nails in the floor to prevent children from moving.

During his initial court appearance, Parr denied the allegations that children had been confined in cages. He also told the court that he loved his children.

Coleman reportedly acknowledged knowing about the wall-squat punishments and expressed disagreement with the practice. According to published accounts of her statements to investigators, she said she had not intervened because she had nowhere else to live.

Those statements have not been tested through a completed criminal trial. They also do not resolve whether the alleged punishments occurred, how frequently they occurred or which children experienced them.

Both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty. The publicly available records reviewed for this article do not establish a final disposition of the charges.

Earlier encounters with police and child welfare authorities

The October arrests prompted renewed scrutiny of previous law enforcement contacts involving the household.

NBC4 reported on October 21 that records showed at least 17 calls for service involving the property or its occupants since 2018. Those calls covered a range of matters, including disputes, disorderly conduct and reports of gunfire. They should not be interpreted as 17 separate complaints of child abuse.

Two calls specifically concerned the children, according to the station’s review.

One earlier encounter occurred in October 2023, when deputies conducted a welfare check at the property. The available reporting indicates that officers did not identify an immediate danger requiring the children’s removal at that time.

The welfare check is significant because it occurred within the period of alleged conduct identified in the criminal complaint. However, the published summaries do not establish precisely what prompted the visit, whether deputies interviewed the children separately, which parts of the property were examined or what information was shared with child protective services.

Without those records, it is not possible to determine whether officers overlooked evidence of abuse or whether the information available at the time was insufficient to justify further action.

Another encounter occurred in January 2024, when authorities responded to a medical emergency involving one of the children. According to records described by NBC4, the child was suffering from a serious infection, and Coleman initially resisted medical treatment before ultimately allowing the child to be transported to a hospital.

The incident raises questions about whether medical personnel or responding officers identified concerns about neglect and whether any referral or follow-up investigation occurred. The available reporting does not establish that a medical professional concluded the child had been abused or that an agency failed to fulfill a specific legal obligation.

The family had also previously been investigated by Franklin County Children’s Services. The agency confirmed earlier involvement, including cases as recently as late 2022, but said those matters had been resolved. It declined to disclose additional information, citing confidentiality requirements.

The existence of previous child welfare investigations does not, by itself, establish that authorities had substantiated abuse or ignored evidence that would have justified removal. Reports may be investigated and closed for different reasons, including insufficient evidence or a determination that immediate intervention is unnecessary.

Still, the prior involvement forms an important part of the family’s documented history. The findings of those investigations, the reasons the cases were closed and any subsequent communication between agencies have not been publicly established.

Questions that remain unanswered

The allegations against Parr and Coleman concern conduct that prosecutors say occurred over a period of more than three years. The investigation also involves physical conditions observed during the October search, statements from multiple children and potential electronic evidence.

Several questions remain unresolved.

Investigators have not publicly confirmed whether cameras were recovered from the property or whether recordings exist of the alleged punishments. The results of examinations of the seized electronic devices have not been disclosed.

The published reporting also does not establish the complete circumstances of the October 2023 welfare check or whether the January 2024 hospitalization led to additional child welfare involvement. The findings of the earlier Franklin County Children’s Services investigations remain confidential.

The October 23 preliminary hearing was scheduled in earlier coverage, but its outcome has not been independently verified for this article. Any subsequent changes to the charges or the case’s procedural status will need to be confirmed through the court docket.

These gaps matter because they affect how the earlier agency contacts should be understood. A history of police calls and child welfare investigations can raise legitimate questions about oversight, but determining whether an opportunity to intervene was missed requires evidence of what each agency knew and what action was legally and practically available.

The children’s identities have not been disclosed in this report, and their private medical and child welfare records should remain protected.

For the nine children removed from the property, the investigation represents more than a criminal case. It concerns the circumstances in which they lived, the allegations they disclosed and the response of the institutions responsible for their protection.

The school counselor’s account of ensuring that two brothers received meals during the school day offers one glimpse of how concerns about their welfare emerged outside the home. The earlier police contacts and child welfare investigations provide a separate, incomplete record of the household’s interactions with authorities.

Whether those encounters could have led to earlier intervention remains unresolved.

As prosecutors continue pursuing the charges against Parr and Coleman, the central questions extend beyond what deputies discovered in October. They include what was known about the children’s circumstances in the preceding years, how earlier concerns were investigated and whether additional evidence can establish the full extent of the alleged mistreatment.

The answers will be important not only to the criminal proceedings, but also to understanding how nine children came to be removed from a household that had previously attracted the attention of law enforcement and child welfare authorities.

November 2 update: Jonathan Parr and Jacquelyn Coleman remain listed in Licking County custody, each with a $150,000 bond. The sheriff’s current jail roster lists felony child-endangering charges and indicates both are awaiting indictment. The roster does not establish their next hearing dates.

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Sources and reporting notes

This article is based on published court allegations, official statements and reporting by journalists who reviewed investigative records. Wait, Explain That? has located but has not independently examined the complete ten-page sheriff’s investigative report or the underlying records of all earlier police calls. Details from those documents are attributed to the outlets that reviewed them.

Primary document identified:

Licking County Sheriff’s Office, investigative report, Case No. 26-41885:
https://www.nbc4i.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/18/2026/10/26-41885.pdf

Additional reporting:

The Reporting Project, October 14, 2026:
https://www.thereportingproject.org/etna-township-couple-arrested-charged-with-child-endangerment-after-nine-children-removed-from-home/

WOSU Public Media, October 15, 2026:
https://www.wosu.org/2026-10-15/court-records-reveal-disturbing-details-in-licking-county-child-endangering-case

Law&Crime, October 15, 2026:
https://lawandcrime.com/crime/dad-and-mom-locked-children-in-cages-and-put-nails-between-toes-to-stop-stealing-food-at-night-cops-say/

NBC4 / WCMH, October 21, 2026:
https://www.aol.com/articles/details-emerge-nine-ohio-children-180000000.html

NBC4 / WCMH, previous child welfare investigations:
https://www.aol.com/articles/adults-charged-licking-county-child-190358000.html

This article will be updated as additional official records, court proceedings and verified evidence become available.