Wyandotte Parents to Face Child Abuse Charges

A Wyandotte couple accused of forcing their two young children to stand in steaming hot water for so long that the youngsters' feet were severely burned will be charged with child abuse.

Wyandotte Police Chief Daniel Grant said the pair will each face two counts of child abuse, each punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office signed off on the warrants Tuesday morning. An arraignment time has not yet been set. Their names have not been released prior to arraignment.

Wyandotte police arrested the pair, who police say has a history of drug use, at their house in the 300 block of Kings Highway on Nov. 7. 

Wyandotte Fire Department paramedics, who first arrived to the home, determined that both children -- a 4-year-old girl and a 2-year-old boy -- had burns on their feet, Grant said.

Paramedics also reported that both parents appeared to be heavily under the influence of narcotics. Police later found more than 100 Vicodin and Xanax pills in the pockets of the 28-year-old father, Grant said.

The youngsters' grandparents, who also reside at the home, told police they initially heard the children screaming and crying in the upstairs portion of the home.

When the noise didn’t subside, the grandfather went up to check on things and found the children in the bathroom, standing in the bathtub of steaming hot water, unable to get out.

He told police he removed both children from the water, while the father sat unresponsive on the toilet.

Police talked to the father, and the 24-year-old mother, before arresting them, and said both appeared to be heavily under the influence of narcotics, as neither of them seemed to understand the severity of the situation.

The grandparents confirmed to police that the couple has had a problem with prescription drug abuse for some time.

Both children were taken to Children’s Hospital of Michigan for treatment and were later released, Grant said. They've since been placed in the custody of their grandparents.