FILE - Police tape surrounds a home where authorities say they removed 16 children and arrested four adults in Hamden, Ohio, July 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)
A man whose 16 grandchildren were discovered living in nasty conditions was found mentally incompetent to stand trial on Wednesday (September 9). The rescue happened at a rural southern Ohio home two months ago. A judge in Vinton County accepted the findings of an evaluation report for Gary Siders Sr.
Vinton County Prosecutor William Archer did not object to the findings about Gary Siders Sr. The 73-year-old appeared in court in a wheelchair. His attorney, Dorian Baum, said after the hearing that Siders’ mental health has been declining for years and is “not restorable.”
“It’s not really a surprise to any of us that he’s not been found competent at this point,” Baum said. “He doesn’t fully understand or appreciate what’s going on.”
For context, Gary Siders Sr. was charged with 16 counts of child endangerment related to the children. Officials rescued the kids on June 30 from a home in Hamden, about 80 miles south of Columbus.
Siders’ wife, Christina Siders andson Gary Siders Jr.pled not guilty. Additionally, the grandchildren’s mother and daughter-in-law to Gary Sr., Elizabeth Siders, also pleaded not guilty.
Investigators said the children remained mostly confined to a small room in the house under deplorable conditions. The children weren’t attending or registered in school. Also, the family moved around over the past two decades. Neighbors said they’d never spotted the kids. At the time they were found, the grandchildren ranged in age from 18 months to 18 years. Officials described some of the kids as “feral” and unable to speak. Furthermore, authorities said their medical conditions varied.
The eldest child was born in May 2008. That happened two months after Gary Siders Jr., at 18 years old, and Elizabeth, at 15 years old, crossed into West Virginia to marry. They wed at the Mason County Courthouse with her parents’ consent, according to court records. She has been pregnant most years since then, the records show.
Associated Press contributed to this report via AP Newsroom.
