Madison man accused in child abuse case makes bail

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MADISON - A Madison man accused of starving-and-confining his 15-year-old daughter is out of jail for the first time in over three months.

Dane County sheriff’s officials said the 41-year-old man was released late yesterday afternoon, after he posted a nine-thousand-dollar bail. His 42-year-old wife was released on May 19th after she posted the same amount of bond. Both are charged with six felonies, after they were accused of locking the girl in their basement and forcing her to find scraps for food.

The couple was arrested in February after the girl escaped their house – and a passer-by found her wearing only pajamas on a cold winter’s day. At that time, the 15-year-old had only weighed 68 pounds, about the weight of an average nine-year-old. Her father was originally held on a $22,500-dollar bond, and the step-mother was jailed on a $30,000. But Dane County Circuit Judge Julie Genovese agreed to reduce both their bonds to nine-thousand each. The girl’s 18-year-old stepbrother is also charged with repeatedly molesting her while she was confined. He’ll stay in jail, as authorities said he violated a previous probation.

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