Starved twins' mom to be sentenced today

By Megan Matteucci

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A Lovejoy mother convicted of nearly starving her twin sons to death will be sentenced today.

Clayton Court Superior Court Judge Deborah Benefield is scheduled to sentence Tessa Zelek on Monday afternoon.

Zelek, 25, faces up to 70 years in prison, her attorney Marc Pilgrim said.

Zelek and four witnesses are scheduled to speak at her sentencing, Pilgrim said.

On Oct. 1, a jury found Zelek guilty of two counts of cruelty to children, four counts of contributing to the deprivation of a minor and two counts of forgery – all felonies.

The jury found Zelek starved her children, Ashton and Avery McCart, to near death. The boys were 13-months-old in November 2007 when family members intervened and took them to the hospital, prosecutors said.

At that point, the boys each weighed less than nine pounds. Doctors testified that the boys looked like skeletons. They were so malnourished that they could barely move and their brains had shrunk, doctors testified at Zelek’s trial.

The boys’ father, James McCart, also faced up to 70 years. But he has opted to take a plea, which would carry a 15-year sentence, prosecutors said.

He testified against Zelek during her trial. He remains in the Clayton County jail.

Zelek’s mother, Christiann Zelek, is also charged with failure to report child abuse.

Her trial was scheduled for this week, but was pushed back to next month.

Prosecutors say the 53-year-old, a former Henry County schools administrator, did not seek medical attention for the babies and tried to conceal the crime.

She remains on bond at her McDonough home.

The children, who are now almost 3, are staying with their paternal grandparents. Guardians said the boys are a bit behind other children in their age group and a little smaller because they suffered brain damage from the malnourishment.

“This case is about survival, little people who survived, regardless of their parents caring for them or not. Fortunately, someone intervened,” Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Anece Baxter White said during the trial.