Wyandotte Parents Waive Prelim; Head to Trial on 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 waived their rights to a preliminary hearing on Thursday, sending their cases straight to the Wayne County Circuit Court.

Erica Anne Bohn, 25, and Brandon Edward Soules, 29, will face a separate arraignment at 9 a.m. Dec. 20 in circuit court. Both are charged with two felony counts of second-degree child abuse, punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Twenty-seventh District Judge Randall Kalmbach ordered that bond be continued as previously set—$20,000/10 percent for Bohn and $30,000/10 percent for Soules. Neither have posted bond and remain locked up in the Wayne County Jail.

Bohn's relatives were in court Thursday and shouted “love you” and “take care” to her as she was taken out of the courtroom. They declined to comment further.

Attorney Kimberly Lewis is representing Bohn and also declined to talk about the case.

Attorney Romi Mezy is representing Soules and said his client is very remorseful over what occurred.

"This was an unintentional act," Mezy said. "They are both loving parents who have a drug problem."

While the case is pending, both parents have been ordered to stay away from their children, a 4-year-old girl and 2-year-old boy, who remain in their grandparents' custody.

Mezy said Soules wants to enroll in a parenting class.

"He is very concerned and he wants to see his children again," Mezy said. "He takes full responsibility for what occurred."

Mezy asked that the matter be referred to pretrial services to determine whether bond was appropriately set. Kalmbach agreed to have the matter of bond looked at, but said he feels it's appropriately set based on Soules' prior record—breaking and entering into a vehicle, being a minor in possession of alcohol, impaired driving, driving on an expired license and two separate cases of retail fraud.

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