The Paulding County parents accused of locking up their teenage son for several years have been indicted by a grand jury on numerous felony charges.
The indictment, handed down Monday and obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, charges Paul and Sheila Comer with seven counts of cruelty to children, two counts of false imprisonment and one count of kidnapping for their alleged treatment of their now 18-year-old son, Mitch. The Comers were arrested Sept. 12 at their rental home near Dallas, one day after Mitch Comer was found wandering alone in a Los Angeles bus station.
After allegedly locking Mitch in a bathroom and later a bedroom for at least three years and depriving him of food, the Comers put the teen on a bus to California and told him not to return, according to investigators. The day after his 18th birthday, Mitch was placed in the back of his stepfather’s van and driven to a bus station, where Paul Comer allegedly provided the teen with a bus ticket, cash and pamphlets from a homeless shelter.
The emaciated teen, who weighed just 87 pounds when he was spotted in the bus station by a former security guard, told L.A. police of the abuse he allegedly suffered at the hands of his parents. Police in California contacted the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office, which immediately began an investigation.
At the time of the Comers' arrests, their two daughters were placed in protective custody, according to police. A Paulding County deputy later accompanied Mitch Comer back to Georgia, where he has been in the care of a local family. The teen has gained weight and is doing well, investigators have said. Mitch Comer has not spoken publicly about his ordeal.
Paul and Sheila Comer were denied bond at a hearing earlier this month and remain in the Paulding County jail. Their attorneys contend the Comers are innocent and were trying to discipline Mitch.
But investigators testified Oct. 4 that both of the Comers have admitted to their actions.
“Both of them conceded that that was his life,” Sgt. Kevin Morgan with the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office said from the witness stand. “He lived in that room for years.”
Neither Paul nor Sheila Comer has a criminal history. But while living in Cherokee County, the family was investigated in 2009 by the Department of Family and Children Services and the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office. The case was closed and no charges were filed.
In addition to allegedly depriving Mitch of food and medical care, the Comers also are accused of physically injuring the teen by punching him in the jaw and kicking him in the groin area, the indictment states. Investigators have said the teenager last attended school in 2009 in Cherokee County.
The Comers’ next court appearance has not yet been scheduled.
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