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What made you call in a favor you swore you'd never use? [FULL STORY] — Transcript

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0:00What made you call in a favor you swore
0:01you'd never use? My six-year-old
0:03daughter, Pia, came back from her dad's
0:04house with chunks of hair missing. I
0:06found her in the bathroom at 3:00 a.m.
0:08with safety scissors, cutting more off.
0:10When I grabbed the scissors, she
0:11whispered. Daddy's friends choose one
0:13girl for the basement. I have to be the
0:15ugly one or they'll take me. She was
0:17shaking so hard she threw up. I called
0:19him begging for answers. "You're
0:20insane," he said calmly. "I'm
0:22documenting this call. The judge will
0:24love hearing how you're filling Pia's
0:26head with sick fantasies." The custody
0:28threat. And two days later, I got my
0:29proof because that's when Jasmine came
0:31over. Jasmine was one of my ex's seven
0:33daughters that he had with five
0:35different women, all with weekend
0:36custody arrangements. And she came over
0:38with chunks of hair missing. Her mom
0:40mentioned Jasmine kept saying Pia saved
0:42me, but wouldn't explain what that
0:43meant. That's when I realized this
0:45wasn't isolated to my daughter. I called
0:47every parent whose daughter visited my
0:48ex's house. Four other girls had cut
0:50their hair in the past 2 months. One mom
0:52said her daughter kept a notebook
0:54tracking whose turn it was for basement
0:55time. Another found her six-year-old
0:57practicing making herself ugly with
0:59markers on her face at 2:00 a.m. 4 days
1:01until Pia's next visit. My ex's
1:03girlfriend sent me a text. Your daughter
1:05is teaching bad habits to the younger
1:07ones. Now none of them are suitable.
1:09This needs to stop. The word suitable
1:11made my skin crawl. I went to CPS with
1:13photos of the girls destroyed hair and
1:15statements from five mothers. The case
1:17worker said children cut their hair all
1:18the time and without evidence of
1:20physical abuse, they couldn't
1:21investigate. She actually wrote in her
1:23notes that I appeared to be coaching my
1:25daughter. Three days wasted. One mother,
1:27Elizabeth, was my last hope. Her
1:29daughter, Emily, used to have the
1:31prettiest hair of all the girls, long
1:32blonde and past her waist. Emily got
1:35picked for the basement two months ago
1:36and hadn't been the same since. She
1:38slept under her bed, wouldn't let anyone
1:40bathe her, and drew pictures of stairs
1:42going down into darkness. Elizabeth
1:44looked broken when she told me Emily
1:45still had the hair she cut off saved in
1:46a box under her bed labeled before. I
1:49had three days left and tried the police
1:50again. The officer actually smirked.
1:53Little girls playing hairdresser isn't a
1:54crime, ma'am. Maybe focus on being a
1:56better co-parent. He slid the photos
1:58back without looking. Besides, your ex
2:00already called. Said, "You might come in
2:02with wild stories." That night, Pia
2:04stood at the mirror touching the small
2:05amount of regrowth. "It's getting pretty
2:07again," she said matterofactly. "I'll
2:09have to go down next time." My phone
2:11buzzed. "It was my lawyer." I begged him
2:13to tell the judge I was sick in an
2:15accident, detained. Any lie that would
2:17let me keep her home Friday. He stayed
2:19silent until I finished crying to say
2:21the words that broke me. If I didn't
2:22send Pia for her visit, I'd lose custody
2:24permanently. I had 24 hours to decide
2:26between contempt of court or sending my
2:28daughter back to that house. Pia gave me
2:30Jasmine's hair ribbon at breakfast. My
2:32hair grew back too fast last time.
2:34Jasmine had to go instead. The guilt in
2:36her six-year-old voice broke me. 1 hour
2:38left and Pia gripped my hand in the car.
2:40What if I can't make myself ugly enough
2:42this time? When we pulled into his
2:44driveway, two other cars were already
2:45there. Selena climbed out first, 5 years
2:48old, with blonde curls to her waist.
2:50Then Eve, seven with beautiful dark
2:52hair. Pia saw them and started
2:54screaming. Not them. They're too pretty.
2:56I just smiled because I wasn't just
2:58dropping Pia off tonight. I was getting
3:00into that basement. I called my cousin
3:02Pedro, ex-military police. Remember what
3:04Uncle Larry did to us? He didn't need
3:06more. Give me 20 minutes. The other
3:08mothers were walking their daughters to
3:10the door. Pedro arrived with his brother
3:12Jose. They'd done two tours in
3:13Afghanistan together. Knew how to make
3:15people talk. My ex came out smiling,
3:18ready to gloat about custody, but his
3:20face changed when he saw Pedro. "Get
3:21inside," Pedro said quietly. The other
3:24mothers held their daughters back as we
3:25followed him in. His girlfriend tried to
3:27run. Jose caught her in the kitchen, zip
3:30tied to a chair in seconds. My ex backed
3:32against the wall. "This is kidnapping.
3:34You just lost custody forever. Where's
3:36the basement?" I cut him off. Pedro
3:38already found it. Three locks, just like
3:40the neighbor said. He had them picked in
3:42under a minute. My ex went white. You
3:44can't go down there. Please, you don't
3:46understand. The pretty ones go down. I
3:48was recording everything. One girl every
3:51weekend. Pia tried to save them by
3:52cutting her hair. I moved toward the
3:54stairs. The wooden steps creaked under
3:56my weight as I went down into the
3:58darkness. Cold air wrapped around me,
4:00and I could see my breath in little
4:01puffs. A single bulb hung from a wire in
4:03the middle of the ceiling. It swayed
4:05back and forth, throwing crazy shadows
4:06on the gray concrete walls. My phone
4:08shook in my hand, but I kept recording
4:10everything. The smell hit me first, like
4:12old gym socks mixed with something sour
4:14that made my stomach flip. At the bottom
4:16of the stairs, I stopped and stared at
4:17what they'd set up down here. A tripod
4:19stood in the corner with a video camera
4:21pointed at a small mattress on the
4:22floor. The mattress had stains on it and
4:24no sheets. SD cards were scattered
4:26across a wooden table next to the
4:28tripod. Four metal rings were bolted
4:30into the walls at different heights with
4:31rope coiled next to each one. My legs
4:33felt weak, but I forced myself to walk
4:35closer and film every detail. Pedro
4:37called down from the top of the stairs,
4:38asking if I was okay. I managed to say
4:40yes even though my whole body was
4:42shaking. I needed to document everything
4:43before the police got here. My ex
4:45started yelling from upstairs about
4:47lawsuits and kidnapping charges and how
4:48we'd all go to jail. His voice sounded
4:50scared now instead of angry. I ignored
4:52him and kept filming the basement setup.
4:54On the table next to the SD cards, I
4:56found a notebook with a pink cover.
4:58Inside were dates going back months with
4:59different initials next to each date. P
5:02for Pia appeared a lot at first, but
5:03less after 2 months ago. JM for Jasmine
5:06showed up more recently. E R had the
5:08most marks next to her initials. Emily
5:10Rose from Elizabeth's descriptions. The
5:12pattern made me want to throw up. Each
5:14weekend, one set of initials got marked.
5:16The pretty ones went down just like Pia
5:17said. My hands shook so bad I almost
5:19dropped the notebook, but I filmed every
5:21page. Jose was keeping my ex and his
5:23girlfriend tied up in the kitchen while
5:24I searched for more evidence. A metal
5:26cabinet sat against the far wall with a
5:28padlock on it. I called Pedro down, and
5:30he had it picked in 30 seconds. Inside
5:32were more SD cards and plastic cases
5:34with dates written on labels. two years
5:36worth of weekend dates. Pedro<unk>'s
5:38face went white when he saw how many
5:39there were. We both knew what these
5:41probably showed. The girlfriend started
5:43screaming from upstairs that we didn't
5:44understand anything. She yelled that the
5:46girls needed to learn humility and
5:48respect, and that's all this was about.
5:50Her voice got higher as she insisted
5:51they were teaching the girls their place
5:53in the world. I ran back up the stairs
5:55with my phone still recording to catch
5:56her words. She kept going even when she
5:58saw me filming. She said the pretty ones
6:00got too much attention and needed to be
6:02brought down. She said it built
6:03character. My ex told her to shut up,
6:05but she kept screaming about how the
6:07girls needed to learn. I got it all on
6:09video. My hands stopped shaking as I
6:10dialed 911. The dispatcher answered and
6:13I told her we'd found a locked basement
6:14with evidence of child abuse. She asked
6:16if anyone was hurt and I explained about
6:18the girls cutting their hair and the
6:19basement setup. I gave her the address
6:21and she said units were on the way. She
6:23told me not to touch anything else, but
6:24I'd already touched plenty. The other
6:26mothers had gathered their daughters
6:27outside by their cars. I went out and
6:29asked the neighbor lady to come look at
6:31what we'd found. She was maybe 70 years
6:33old with gray hair and curlers. She said
6:35she'd heard crying from the house
6:36sometimes, but figured it was just kids
6:38being kids. When she saw the basement,
6:40her hand went to her mouth. She kept
6:41saying, "Oh my god," over and over. She
6:43said she'd testify to whatever we
6:45needed. Two patrol cars pulled up with
6:47lights flashing, but no sirens. The
6:48officers got out slow like this wasn't
6:50urgent. They saw Pedro and Jose standing
6:52guard and immediately got defensive. One
6:55officer said, "We could face charges for
6:56unlawful entry and restraint." Pedro
6:58stayed calm and explained we'd prevented
7:00imminent harm to children. The officer
7:02said that wasn't for us to decide. They
7:04wanted to arrest Pedro and Jose right
7:06there, but Pedro kept his cool. He
7:08showed them the basement and suddenly
7:09they stopped talking about arresting
7:10anyone. One officer called for backup
7:12while the other started taking pictures.
7:1420 minutes later, an unmarked car pulled
7:16up and Detective John Curry got out. He
7:18was maybe 50 with gray hair and moved
7:20like he'd seen everything. He turned on
7:22his body camera right away and started
7:23separating everyone for statements. He
7:25told the patrol officers to secure the
7:27scene and keep everyone separated. His
7:29whole manner changed when he saw the
7:30basement. He stopped being skeptical and
7:32started being thorough. He asked me to
7:34walk him through everything from the
7:35beginning while his camera recorded. I
7:37showed him the notebook with the
7:38schedule and the cabinet full of SD
7:40cards. He bagged everything as evidence
7:42and called for a forensics team. He said
7:44this would be handled right and I
7:46actually believed him. Detective Curry
7:47pulled out his phone and made a call to
7:49the child advocacy center while the
7:50patrol officers kept everyone separated.
7:53He explained we needed trained
7:54interviewers for the girls because any
7:56contaminated statements could destroy
7:57the whole case in court. I handed him my
7:59phone with all the videos I'd recorded
8:01of the basement and the girlfriend's
8:02screaming confession about teaching the
8:04girls their place. My ex started in
8:06again about how I was crazy and filling
8:07Pia's head with sick ideas and reminded
8:10everyone he'd already called the police
8:11about my mental state weeks ago.
8:13Detective Curry listened without any
8:14expression on his face, then asked my ex
8:16to explain why there were three locks on
8:18the basement door if nothing bad was
8:20happening down there. My ex's mouth
8:21opened and closed like a fish, but no
8:23words came out. The detective went back
8:25down to the basement with his camera and
8:27started documenting everything while
8:29calling for a forensics team to come
8:30process the scene. He put on gloves and
8:32carefully bagged each SD card as
8:34evidence and took photos of the mattress
8:36and the anchor points in the walls and
8:37the tripod setup. His partner started
8:40talking to the other mothers who were
8:41still outside with their daughters and
8:43taking notes about when each girl had
8:44started cutting her hair and what other
8:46behavior changes they'd noticed. One of
8:48the patrol officers mentioned that Pedro
8:49and Jose could face charges for unlawful
8:51restraint since they'd zip tied my ex
8:53and his girlfriend. Detective Curry
8:55looked up from bagging evidence and said
8:56they'd prevented ongoing child
8:58endangerment using minimal force and the
9:00discussion should focus on getting
9:01everyone's official statements instead
9:03of arresting the people who'd stopped
9:04this. About 40 minutes later, a woman in
9:07a gray suit showed up and introduced
9:09herself as Marta Price from CPS. She
9:11took one look at the basement setup and
9:12the evidence bags and immediately
9:14approved an emergency protective hold on
9:16all seven girls. She was mad that a
9:18previous complaint had been closed
9:19without proper investigation and kept
9:21shaking her head while reading through
9:22the old case file on her tablet. She
9:24made it clear none of the girls would be
9:26going back to their father's house
9:27tonight or any night until this was
9:28fully investigated. Two vans from the
9:30advocacy center arrived to transport the
9:32children for forensic interviews with
9:33their specialist Isabelle Rose. I was
9:35scared about what Pia would have to
9:37describe, but knew she needed to tell
9:38trained professionals who could document
9:40everything properly for court. The other
9:42mothers and I got in our own cars to
9:43follow the vans while the police stayed
9:45to continue processing the scene.
9:46Detective Curry asked me to come to the
9:48station to give my formal statement
9:49about why I'd entered the house without
9:51permission. He said I might get a
9:52trespass citation, but he understood my
9:55position as a mother trying to protect
9:56her child and advised me to cooperate
9:58fully with everything going forward.
10:00Pedro and Jose had to show their IDs and
10:02explain their military background to the
10:03officers. They agreed to stay available
10:05as witnesses and understood they might
10:07face misdemeanor charges for the
10:09restraint. Even though they had been
10:10trying to help, I felt bad for dragging
10:12them into this mess. But Pedro just
10:14squeezed my shoulder and said, "Family
10:16protects family no matter what." The
10:18girlfriend started trying to minimize
10:19everything while still zip tied to the
10:20chair. She claimed they were just
10:22teaching the girls to be modest and not
10:23vain about their looks. She admitted the
10:25word suitable in her text meant teaching
10:27them humility through basement time, but
10:29insisted it was all about building
10:30character and respect. Every word out of
10:32her mouth made things worse for them and
10:34Detective Curry recorded all of it on
10:36his body camera. He called someone named
10:38Sunnita Batia, who was an assistant
10:40district attorney and explained what
10:41we'd found. She approved seeking a
10:43telephonic search warrant for the SD
10:44cards so they could review the footage
10:46immediately instead of waiting days for
10:48a regular warrant. Within an hour, the
10:50warrant came through and Detective Curry
10:51started reviewing the videos on a laptop
10:53in his car. His face got darker and
10:55darker with each video he watched. The
10:57preliminary footage showed girls crying
10:59on the basement stairs even though there
11:00wasn't visible physical abuse happening.
11:03The psychological torture was clear in
11:04their faces and the way they shook and
11:06begged not to go down. Detective Curry
11:08said this was more than enough for
11:09criminal charges and called the ADA back
11:12to discuss next steps. 20 minutes later,
11:14Detective Curry had his laptop open in
11:16the conference room, reviewing the SD
11:18card footage while I sat across from
11:19him, trying not to throw up. The first
11:21video showed Emily standing at the top
11:22of the basement stairs crying so hard
11:24she couldn't breathe while my ex's voice
11:26said she was chosen for being the
11:28prettiest that week. The second video
11:29had Jasmine begging not to go down
11:31because her stomach hurt and the
11:32girlfriend telling her pretty girls
11:34don't complain. Detective Curry's jaw
11:36kept getting tighter with each video he
11:37clicked through. And after the fifth
11:38one, he closed the laptop and called the
11:40ADA again, saying they had more than
11:42enough for multiple felony charges. We
11:44walked out to the garage where another
11:46officer was taking photos of a huge
11:47whiteboard covered in the girl's
11:48initials with dates next to them going
11:50back 2 years. Every girl who'd cut her
11:52hair had their initials circled in red
11:54marker with the word unsuitable written
11:56next to them starting exactly when
11:57they'd destroyed their hair. The
11:59schedule showed Emily's initials
12:00appearing every other week until 2
12:02months ago when she started cutting her
12:03hair and then Jasmine's initials
12:05replaced hers on the schedule. Detective
12:07Curry took close-up photos of everything
12:08while calling someone at CPS about a
12:10complaint from 14 months ago that got
12:12closed without investigation. He found
12:14the case number in their system showing
12:15a neighbor had reported hearing children
12:17crying and screaming from the basement.
12:19But the case worker had marked it as
12:20unsubstantiated after my ex told her the
12:22kids were just playing too rough. The
12:24detective documented everything in his
12:25notes and said this pattern of missed
12:27warnings would strengthen the criminal
12:28case and help with the civil lawsuits
12:30that would definitely be coming. One of
12:32the other officers came in holding a
12:34folder from Emily's school counselor,
12:35who just faxed over drawings Emily had
12:37made six months ago, showing stick
12:39figures going down dark stairs with
12:41tears on their faces. The counselor's
12:43notes said she'd been concerned, but my
12:44ex had explained Emily was just
12:46processing her parents' divorce and
12:47asked them not to contact me about it.
12:49Detective Curry added the drawings to
12:51the evidence pile and called Ada Batia
12:53back to update her on everything they'd
12:54found so far. Within an hour, she'd
12:56filed emergency paperwork with the
12:58family court judge for immediate no
12:59contact orders covering all seven girls,
13:01plus requesting an expanded search
13:03warrant for my ex's computers and phones
13:05to look for more evidence. Two officers
13:07walked my ex out to their patrol car in
13:08handcuffs while he kept yelling about
13:10false imprisonment and how his lawyer
13:12would destroy all of us in court. The
13:14girlfriend got arrested 10 minutes later
13:16after trying to convince the officers
13:17this was all a misunderstanding about
13:19teaching the girls proper values and
13:20modesty. Her lawyer showed up before
13:22they even got her to the station and
13:24started talking about making a deal if
13:25she testified about everything she knew.
13:27Detective Curry handed me a citation for
13:29criminal trespass, but said the DA
13:31probably wouldn't pursue it given the
13:32circumstances and that I should focus on
13:34cooperating with the investigation going
13:36forward. The local news van pulled up
13:38just as they were loading my ex into the
13:40transport vehicle, and a reporter
13:41started asking questions, but I walked
13:43straight past her to my car. Elizabeth
13:45and the other mothers had already agreed
13:46we wouldn't talk to any media until the
13:48girls were safe and the criminal case
13:50was solid. Pedro and Jose got told they
13:52might face misdemeanor charges for the
13:54restraint, but Detective Curry put them
13:56down as cooperating witnesses who'd
13:57helped prevent ongoing child abuse and
13:59they were released without being
14:00arrested. Pedro just shrugged when the
14:02officer explained the possible charges
14:04and said protecting family was worth any
14:06price and he'd do it again tomorrow if
14:07needed. The crime scene team spent
14:09another 3 hours processing the house.
14:11And by the time they finished, they had
14:1212 boxes of evidence, including the
14:14camera equipment, SD cards, the schedule
14:16board, and even the ropes from the
14:18basement walls. Detective Curry said the
14:20preliminary review was enough to support
14:21charges of child endangerment, unlawful
14:24restraint, and conspiracy, but they'd
14:26probably add more charges once they
14:27reviewed all the digital evidence. My
14:29phone kept buzzing with texts from the
14:30other mothers asking for updates, and I
14:32told them about the arrests and
14:34evidence, but asked them to stay quiet
14:36about everything until the official
14:37charges were filed. The detective gave
14:39me his card and said he'd call me the
14:40next day with updates about the case,
14:42and reminded me again not to do anything
14:44that might compromise the prosecution. I
14:46drove to the advocacy center to pick up
14:47Pia, who'd finished her first interview
14:49with Isabelle, and looked exhausted, but
14:51less scared than she had in weeks. On
14:53the way home, she asked if daddy was
14:55going to jail, and I told her the police
14:56were handling everything now and she was
14:58safe. That night, she slept in her own
15:00bed for the first time in a month
15:01without waking up screaming about her
15:03hair growing back. The next morning,
15:05Detective Curry called to say the
15:06girlfriend's lawyer had already reached
15:07out about a cooperation agreement where
15:09she'd testify about the whole system in
15:11exchange for reduced charges. He also
15:13mentioned that two more mothers had come
15:15forward after hearing about the arrests
15:16with similar stories about their
15:17daughters suddenly cutting their hair
15:19after weekend visits. The investigation
15:21was expanding and he said this was
15:22turning into one of the biggest child
15:23abuse cases the county had seen in
15:25years. The advocacy center called me the
15:27next morning to schedule Pia's forensic
15:29interview with Isabelle Rose for that
15:30afternoon. I packed snacks and her
15:32favorite stuffed animal even though they
15:33said she'd be in a separate room from
15:35me. The building looked like a regular
15:36house from outside with a playground in
15:38back and bright paintings in the
15:40windows. Isabelle met us in the lobby
15:42wearing jeans and a sweater instead of a
15:43suit which made Pia relax a little. She
15:45showed Pia the interview room with its
15:47soft couches and art supplies while I
15:49waited in another room, watching through
15:50a monitor. For 2 hours, I watched my
15:53daughter slowly open up about the
15:54basement and the selection process and
15:56how she figured out cutting her hair
15:57would make her less pretty. She couldn't
15:59say everything and kept drawing instead
16:01of talking when Isabelle asked about
16:02specific weekends. Isabelle came out
16:04afterward and explained this was normal
16:06for trauma victims and they'd need
16:07multiple sessions to get the full
16:09picture. She said, "Pia did amazing for
16:10a first interview and gave me referrals
16:12for trauma therapists who specialized in
16:14young children. My lawyer called that
16:16night saying the emergency protective
16:17order hearing was scheduled for 2 days
16:19later and I needed to bring all my
16:21documentation. The retainer I'd paid him
16:233 months ago was already gone and he
16:25needed another 5,000 to continue
16:26representing me." I sold my
16:28grandmother's jewelry the next morning
16:29and pawned my laptop to scrape together
16:313,000. He said we had a strong case with
16:33the arrests and evidence, but warned me
16:35the judge might not be happy about my
16:37vigilante approach. The courthouse was
16:39packed when we arrived for the hearing
16:40with all seven mothers there with their
16:41lawyers. My ex showed up in an orange
16:44jumpsuit with his public defender who
16:45kept arguing this was all a
16:47misunderstanding about appropriate
16:48discipline. The judge reviewed the
16:50evidence for 40 minutes, including the
16:51basement photos and the schedule board
16:53with the girls initials. She granted
16:54extended no contact orders for all seven
16:56girls and removed them from their
16:58father's custody pending the criminal
16:59trial. My chest finally loosened enough
17:01to take a full breath for the first time
17:03in weeks. Then she turned to me with a
17:04stern expression and spent 10 minutes
17:06lecturing me about taking the law into
17:08my own hands. She said I was lucky I
17:10wasn't facing kidnapping charges myself
17:12and that citizens can't just restrain
17:14people and search their homes. But she
17:16acknowledged the system had failed these
17:17children when CPS dismissed the initial
17:19complaint and the police refused to
17:21investigate. She granted me temporary
17:23full custody with CPS monitoring for 6
17:25months to ensure Pia's safety and
17:26wellbeing. It felt humiliating to have a
17:28social worker checking on us, but I'd
17:30accept anything to keep Pia away from
17:32him. Pedro and Jose's arraignment
17:34happened the next week where the
17:35prosecutor offered them a deal for
17:36disorderly conduct with 40 hours of
17:38community service and $500 fines each.
17:41They both laughed when they came out of
17:42court saying it was worth it to see my
17:44ex's face when they walked through his
17:45door. Pedro said family protects family
17:47and he'd do it again tomorrow if needed.
17:49I promised to pay their fines as soon as
17:51I could, even though my bank account was
17:52already empty from legal fees. Detective
17:54Curry called me 3 days later with huge
17:56news about the girlfriend flipping on my
17:58ex. Her lawyer had worked out a
17:59cooperation agreement where she'd
18:00testify about everything in exchange for
18:02reduced charges. She spent six hours
18:04with the detective describing the beauty
18:06ranking system they used for the girls
18:08and how they picked which one went to
18:09the basement each weekend. She explained
18:11how they'd rate the girls from prettiest
18:12to ugliest when they arrived and the
18:14prettiest one had to go downstairs for
18:16special time. The detective said even he
18:18was shaken by the systematic nature of
18:19the psychological abuse that had been
18:21going on for 2 years. She also admitted
18:23to helping create the schedule and
18:24enforcing the rules about which girl's
18:26turn it was. Her testimony gave them
18:28enough to add conspiracy charges on top
18:30of the child endangerment and unlawful
18:32imprisonment. Sunnita Batia, the ADA,
18:35called me the following week about a
18:36plea deal for my ex to avoid putting the
18:38girls through testifying at trial. She
18:40was offering him 3 years for unlawful
18:42imprisonment and child endangerment if
18:44he'd plead guilty and avoid trial. Part
18:46of me wanted him to rot in prison for
18:47decades, but I understood protecting the
18:49girls from having to relive everything
18:51on the witness stand. She gave him two
18:53weeks to decide while she continued
18:54building the case in case he refused.
18:56Meanwhile, Elizabeth started organizing
18:58the other mothers into an informal
18:59support group since we were all dealing
19:01with traumatized daughters and
19:02overwhelming legal bills. We met at her
19:04house every Thursday night while someone
19:06watched all the kids together in the
19:07playroom. We shared therapist
19:08recommendations and compared notes on
19:10our daughter's recovery and split the
19:12cost of pizza. None of us had imagined
19:13we'd become friends through something so
19:15horrible, but we understood each other
19:16in ways nobody else could. Elizabeth
19:19found a nonprofit that helped with legal
19:20fees for abuse victims and helped us all
19:22apply. The first time Pia met with her
19:24trauma therapist, she came out looking
19:26exhausted and fell asleep in the car
19:28before we got home. The therapist, an
19:30older woman who specialized in childhood
19:31trauma, said Pia was remarkably
19:33resilient for everything she'd endured.
19:35But the first few sessions were brutal
19:37with Pia having nightmares every night
19:38afterward and crawling into my bed
19:40shaking. The therapist said this was
19:42part of processing the trauma and would
19:44get better with time. But watching my
19:46daughter suffer through healing felt
19:47almost as bad as the original trauma. We
19:49kept going twice a week, even when Pia
19:51begged not to go back because the
19:52therapist said consistency was crucial
19:54for recovery. 3 weeks after the
19:56girlfriend testified, my ex's lawyer
19:58called Sunita to accept the plea deal.
20:00His lawyer had explained he was facing
20:0120 to 30 years if convicted at trial
20:03with all the evidence against him. The
20:05sentencing was scheduled for 6 weeks
20:07later, and I felt relief flooding
20:08through me that the girls wouldn't have
20:10to testify. 6 weeks passed like a blur
20:12of therapy appointments and legal
20:13meetings before the sentencing hearing
20:15arrived. The courtroom was packed with
20:17all the mother's clutching tissues while
20:18my ex stood in his orange jumpsuit
20:20looking smaller than I'd ever seen him.
20:22The judge read through the charges
20:23slowly and deliberately while reviewing
20:25the evidence Detective Curry had
20:26compiled, including the basement videos
20:28and the girlfriend's testimony about
20:30their ranking system. My ex's lawyer
20:32asked for leniency, citing his lack of
20:34prior criminal record, but Sunnita shut
20:36that down fast by detailing the
20:37systematic nature of the psychological
20:39torture inflicted on seven little girls
20:41over 2 years. When the judge pronounced
20:4318 months in prison plus 3 years
20:45probation with a permanent ban on
20:47unsupervised contact with any minors,
20:48including his own daughters, I felt my
20:50knees go weak with relief, mixed with
20:53anger that it wasn't more. The baiff
20:54cuffed him and let him away while his
20:56parents sat crying in the back row, and
20:58I held Pia's drawing of our family
21:00without him in it. 2 days after
21:01sentencing, Marta Price called to tell
21:03me CPS was conducting a full internal
21:05review of why my initial complaint got
21:06dismissed without proper investigation.
21:08She came to my apartment with two senior
21:10supervisors who took detailed notes
21:12about everything the first case worker
21:13had said and done, including her
21:15accusation that I was coaching Pia. They
21:17admitted systemic failures in their
21:18screening process and promised new
21:20protocols for evaluating psychological
21:22abuse cases, but their apologies felt
21:24hollow after everything we'd been
21:26through. The supervisor handed me
21:27paperwork about filing a formal
21:29complaint against the original case
21:30worker, which I filled out that night
21:32after Pia finally fell asleep. Elizabeth
21:34organized our next support group meeting
21:36at her house where we discussed the
21:37mountain of legal bills crushing all of
21:38us. She'd found a nonprofit that helped
21:40abuse victims with legal costs and
21:43walked us through the application
21:44process while our daughters played in
21:45the next room. One mother had already
21:47lost her car to pay her lawyer and
21:49another was facing eviction, but we
21:51pulled resources to help each other with
21:52groceries and gas money. Elizabeth
21:54started a fund where people could donate
21:56to help with our expenses. And within a
21:58week, we'd raised enough to keep
21:59everyone housed for another month. Pia's
22:01twice weekly therapy sessions were
22:02brutal to watch as she worked through
22:04the trauma with her therapist drawing
22:05pictures and using dolls to show what
22:07happened. Some nights she'd wake up
22:09screaming about the basement and crawl
22:10into my bed shaking. But other nights
22:12she slept peacefully in her own room,
22:14which the therapist called progress. She
22:16still checked her hair length in the
22:17mirror every morning, running her
22:19fingers through it nervously, but
22:20stopped talking about cutting it off.
22:22The therapist said this obsessive
22:23checking would fade with time and
22:25consistency, but watching my daughter
22:27struggle with something so basic as her
22:28own hair broke my heart daily. Sunnita
22:30called me about pursuing civil suits
22:32against my ex for damages once the
22:33criminal case wrapped up. She gave me
22:35referrals to civil attorneys who worked
22:37on contingency, but I couldn't even
22:38think about more legal battles when I
22:40was drowning in bills and focusing on
22:41getting Pia stable. Maybe someday I'd
22:44have the energy to fight for financial
22:45compensation, but right now just getting
22:47through each day felt like enough. A
22:49victim compensation fund coordinator
22:51reached out after seeing our case in the
22:52news and helped me apply for coverage of
22:54therapy costs and legal fees. The
22:56application was 20 pages of
22:57documentation, but 3 weeks later, they
22:59approved partial coverage, which meant I
23:01could keep Pia in therapy without
23:02choosing between that and groceries. All
23:04the other mothers got approved, too,
23:06which lifted a huge weight off our
23:07collective shoulders. I met with Pia's
23:09school principal and counselor to
23:11discuss accommodations without making
23:12her feel different from other kids. They
23:14implemented a buddy system for bathroom
23:15breaks since Pia got anxious being alone
23:17in small spaces, and her teacher started
23:19watching for signs of distress during
23:21the day. Having adults at the school who
23:23understood what she'd been through and
23:24could support her made such a difference
23:26in her ability to focus on learning. One
23:28Saturday, Elizabeth brought all the
23:30girls to a salon where they decided
23:31together to cut their hair short as a
23:33way to take back control. What had been
23:35forced on them as self-p protection
23:36became their choice, and they giggled,
23:38picking out styles from magazines. Pia
23:40surprised me by keeping hers longer,
23:42saying she liked it now that nobody
23:43could make her cut it. And I watched her
23:45smile at herself in the mirror for the
23:46first time in months. The local news
23:48picked up our story despite our efforts
23:50to stay private. And within days, my
23:52social media filled with horrible
23:53messages from strangers calling me a
23:55liar and saying I'd destroyed an
23:56innocent man's life. Some psycho even
23:58found my work email and sent detailed
24:00threats about what they do to me for
24:02ruining a father's relationship with his
24:03children. I locked down all my accounts
24:05and reported the worst threats to
24:06police, but decided fighting anonymous
24:08trolls wasn't worth the energy I needed
24:10for healing. 3 months after the criminal
24:12case ended, I sat in family court for
24:13the custody modification hearing. With
24:15all our evidence spread across the
24:17table, the judge reviewed everything,
24:19including the criminal conviction and
24:20CPS findings before granting me sole
24:22legal custody permanently with my ex
24:25only eligible for supervised visits if
24:27he completed extensive therapy and met a
24:29long list of strict conditions. Pia was
24:31finally legally protected from him, and
24:33I sobbed in the courthouse bathroom
24:34afterward from pure exhaustion and
24:36relief. 3 weeks later, Pedro texted me a
24:39photo from the community center where he
24:40and Jose were teaching women
24:42self-defense as part of their plea deal.
24:43They had 20 women in the class learning
24:45basic moves, and Pedro was grinning in
24:47the picture, holding up a certificate
24:48from the instructor program. Jose stood
24:51next to him, making bunny ears behind
24:52his head like they were kids again. The
24:54judge gave them 60 hours each, but they
24:56signed up for an extra 40 because they
24:58said helping women protect themselves
24:59felt like finishing what we started that
25:01night. I drove over with coffee and
25:02donuts during their break and watched
25:04them demonstrate escape techniques to a
25:06group of college students. Pedro caught
25:08my eye and mouthed, "Worth it!" while
25:09showing a woman how to break a wrist.
25:11Six months passed and our Tuesday
25:13meetings at Elizabeth's house became the
25:14one thing I never missed. We'd sit
25:16around her kitchen table while the girls
25:18played in the backyard and share updates
25:19about therapy progress and legal
25:21paperwork and which stores had the best
25:23deals on kids clothes. One afternoon,
25:25Pia ran inside with grass stains on her
25:26knees and her hair flying behind her,
25:28asking if she could have a snack. Her
25:30hair had grown past her shoulders now,
25:31and she'd started wearing it in
25:32different styles everyday. That weekend,
25:34she stood in front of my bathroom
25:35mirror, running her fingers through it.
25:37Can I grow it super long like a
25:38princess? I told her she could have any
25:40hairstyle she wanted and she jumped up
25:42and down clapping. We went to the mall
25:44and she picked out sparkly hair clips
25:45and ribbons and a special brush with her
25:47favorite cartoon character on it. The
25:49cashier complimented her beautiful hair
25:51and Pia actually smiled and said thank
25:52you instead of hiding behind me. Two
25:54months after that, Elizabeth called
25:56crying because her car broke down on the
25:57way to Emily's therapy appointment.
25:59Within an hour, three other moms showed
26:01up to help. One drove Elizabeth to the
26:03appointment while another arranged a tow
26:04truck and I picked up her groceries.
26:06We'd become this weird family born from
26:08trauma, but held together by something
26:09stronger. When one of us struggled, the
26:11others just appeared with casserles or
26:13babysitting or sometimes just wine and
26:15tissues. My ex's mother called on a
26:17Thursday afternoon while I was making
26:18dinner. She talked for 20 minutes about
26:20how they'd had no idea what was
26:21happening and how sorry they were and
26:24how they still loved Pia. After three
26:26therapy sessions discussing it and two
26:28meetings with the supervision center
26:29staff, we agreed to monthly visits. Pia
26:31met them at the center with a counselor
26:33present and came home talking about the
26:34puzzles they did together. She deserved
26:36to know her whole family, even if it had
26:38to be through safety glass and
26:39supervised interactions. Elizabeth
26:41brought Emily over one Saturday with a
26:43folder full of drawings from her art
26:44therapy sessions. The early ones were
26:46all black scribbles and dark stairs, but
26:48the newer ones had color. She'd drawn
26:50all seven girls as superheroes with
26:52capes flying above a house. In another
26:54one, they were holding hands in a circle
26:55with bright yellow suns above their
26:57heads. Emily pointed to each figure and
26:59named them, saving Pia for last. She's
27:01the strongest one because she saved us.
27:03The therapist called me after Pia's
27:05session the following week, saying she
27:06was seeing remarkable progress. Pia
27:08could identify her feelings now and had
27:10developed breathing techniques for when
27:11she felt scared. She'd gone from twice
27:13weekly sessions to once a week and might
27:15move to monthly soon. During pickup, Pia
27:17showed me a workbook where she'd drawn
27:18herself as a tree with strong roots and
27:20branches reaching toward the sun. The
27:22advocacy center invited us to their
27:24annual event where adult survivors
27:26shared their stories. I wasn't sure
27:27about taking Pia, but the therapist said
27:29it might help her see that healing was
27:31possible. We sat in the back row and
27:32listened to women talk about building
27:34careers and families and lives after
27:35trauma. Pia held my hand the whole time,
27:37but she was leaning forward listening.
27:39Afterward, she asked if those women were
27:41superheroes, too, and I said yes. During
27:43her next therapy session, Pia had what
27:45the therapist called a major
27:46breakthrough. She'd been carrying guilt
27:48about the other girls going to the
27:49basement when her hair grew back. The
27:51therapist helped her understand that a
27:53six-year-old couldn't protect everyone
27:54and that she'd done something incredible
27:56by trying. Pia came out of that session
27:58standing taller, and for the first time
28:00in months, she didn't check her hair
28:01length in the car mirror. A letter came
28:03from the Department of Corrections
28:04saying my ex was transferred to a
28:06facility with a treatment program. His
28:07parents told me during their next visit
28:09that he'd finally admitted what he did
28:10and was starting therapy. I threw the
28:12letter in the trash without reading the
28:14rest because I didn't care about his
28:15journey or his healing or his anything.
28:17The only thing that mattered was that
28:18he'd be locked up for 18 months and then
28:21banned from unsupervised contact with
28:22children forever. 3 weeks after that,
28:25the district attorney's office called me
28:26about creating new rules for cases like
28:28ours. Detective Curry was running the
28:30training and wanted me to share what
28:31signs we saw that everyone missed. I sat
28:33in a conference room with 20 detectives
28:35while they took notes about hair cutting
28:37and basement locks and how kids protect
28:39each other in ways adults don't
28:40understand. They asked specific
28:42questions about the timeline and I
28:44walked them through every failed report
28:45and dismissed concern. Detective Curry
28:47kept shaking his head when I described
28:49the CPS worker who said I was coaching
28:50Pia. The new protocol they created meant
28:52any report of multiple kids showing the
28:54same weird behavior would trigger a full
28:56investigation. They named it after our
28:58case, but I asked them not to use Pia's
28:59name. Two months passed and Pia was
29:01starting first grade in September. She
29:03walked into that classroom with her
29:04backpack and her hair in braids and
29:06nobody knew what she'd been through. The
29:07teacher called me after the first week
29:09to say Pia was making friends and
29:10participating in everything. She sat
29:12with three other girls at lunch and they
29:13traded snacks and giggled about normal
29:15kids stuff. During parent teacher
29:17conferences, the teacher showed me Pia's
29:18work and said she was reading above
29:20grade level. Her math was strong, too,
29:22and she loved science experiments. The
29:24teacher had no idea about our past, and
29:25that was exactly what Pia needed, just
29:27being a regular kid whose biggest worry
29:29was spelling tests. When the one-year
29:31mark came around in November, Elizabeth
29:33organized something at the park. She
29:35rented the big pavilion, and all seven
29:36families showed up with food and drinks.
29:38The girls ran around playing tag while
29:40we sat at picnic tables watching them.
29:42Nobody talked about what happened that
29:43night or the months of court stuff
29:44after. We just watched our daughters
29:46being kids and ate too much potato
29:48salad. Jasmine was chasing Pia around
29:50the playground and they were both
29:51laughing so hard they could barely run.
29:53Emily had brought sidewalk chalk and all
29:55the girls drew pictures on the concrete.
29:57They drew flowers and rainbows and
29:58regular kids stuff. Not a single dark
30:00staircase in any of the drawings. After
30:02the holidays, Elizabeth signed Emily up
30:04for a kids theater program at the
30:05community center. Pia begged to join,
30:07too, so I signed her up. Every Saturday
30:09morning, they practiced little plays and
30:11learned songs. Pia loved being on stage
30:13where she got to pretend to be different
30:14characters. The instructor said she had
30:16natural stage presence and always knew
30:18her lines. For their spring show, they
30:20did Peter Pan and Pia played one of the
30:21Lost Boys. She had three lines and
30:23practiced them constantly at home. When
30:25show night came, she said them perfectly
30:27and took her bow with the biggest smile.
30:29Around that time, I met someone at the
30:31grocery store of all places. We both
30:33reached for the same box of cereal and
30:35laughed about it. He asked if I wanted
30:36to get coffee and I surprised myself by
30:38saying yes. His name was Mark and he
30:40worked construction. I told him about
30:42Pia on our second date and about
30:43everything that happened. He didn't run
30:45away or act weird about it. He just
30:47listened and said we were brave. When I
30:49introduced him to Pia after a month of
30:51dating, she was nervous and quiet. Mark
30:53didn't push her to talk or try too hard.
30:55He just sat on the floor and built Legos
30:56with her while I made dinner. After he
30:58left, Pia said he seemed okay, which was
31:00huge coming from her. We took things
31:01slow, and Mark understood why. 6 months
31:04into first grade, Pia came to me with an
31:05idea. She wanted to help other kids who
31:07were scared to tell grown-ups bad stuff.
31:09The advocacy center had a program where
31:11older kids who'd been through stuff
31:12talked to younger kids. Isabelle thought
31:14Pia was still too young, but we could
31:16volunteer together. Once a month, we
31:18went to the center and helped set up for
31:19the prevention workshops. Pia would hand
31:21out coloring pages and sit with kids
31:23during snack time. One little girl asked
31:25her if monsters were real, and Pia said,
31:26"Sometimes people act like monsters, but
31:29there are always heroes, too." She
31:30pointed at me when she said the hero
31:32part. The state sent a letter saying the
31:34compensation fund approved more money
31:35for therapy since the girls were all
31:36showing good progress. They admitted the
31:38system failed at first and this was
31:40their way of trying to fix it. The extra
31:42coverage meant we could keep going to
31:43therapy without worrying about the
31:44bills. All seven families got the
31:46approval which helped everyone focus on
31:48getting better instead of going broke.
31:50Elizabeth brought Emily over more often
31:51and the girls became real friends. Not
31:53just trauma bonded, but actual best
31:55friends who like the same movies and
31:56books. They had sleepovers where they
31:58painted nails and watched Disney movies.
32:00One night, I checked on them and they
32:02were both asleep in a blanket fort
32:03they'd built. Emily's mom and I sat in
32:05my kitchen drinking wine and not talking
32:07about the past. We talked about school
32:08fundraisers and soccer signups and
32:10normal mom stuff. Four months into his
32:12sentence, my ex's girlfriend got out.
32:14She had to register as a child abuse
32:16offender and wear an ankle monitor for a
32:17year. The prosecutor called to warn me
32:19she was released, but said she was
32:21moving to Arizona to live with her
32:22sister. We never saw her again. And
32:24honestly, I forgot about her pretty
32:25quickly. 2 years after that horrible
32:27night, I looked around at the summer
32:28barbecue Elizabeth organized. All seven
32:31girls were there playing in the
32:32sprinklers. Some needed more help than
32:34others, but every single one was safe
32:35and loved and getting better. Pia's hair
32:37was down to her shoulders, and she'd put
32:39butterfly clips in it that morning. She
32:41was teaching Jasmine a dance routine
32:42they'd learned at camp. Emily was
32:44drawing with sidewalk chalk again, and
32:45Selena was helping her. Eve was reading
32:47a book under a tree. The other two
32:49youngest ones were building sand castles
32:51in the sandbox. We'd done what we had to
32:52do to save them, and now they were just
32:54being kids. A year later at our annual
32:56family gathering, Pedro stood up with a
32:58beer in his hand and made everyone laugh
33:00about his community service teaching
33:01self-defense. Jose joined him and they
33:04both joked about their criminal records
33:05being worth it to see my ex's face that
33:07night. Everyone at the party knew the
33:09real story and when Pedro said family
33:11protects family, everyone raised their
33:13glasses. The other mothers were all
33:15there with their daughters who ran
33:16around the yard playing tag like regular
33:18kids. Elizabeth brought her famous
33:19potato salad and we sat at picnic tables
33:22watching our girls just be normal. Pedro
33:24and Jose had become the uncles to all
33:26seven girls and they never missed a
33:27birthday or school play. When it got
33:29dark, we lit sparklers, and the girls
33:30wrote their names in the air with the
33:32bright trails. Pia ran over and hugged
33:34Pedro around the waist, and he picked
33:35her up and spun her around. That night,
33:37after everyone went home, I tucked Pia
33:39into bed, and her long hair spread
33:40across her pillow like silk. She picked
33:42out a purple ribbon from her collection
33:44and asked me to braid it in tomorrow for
33:45school. I checked under her bed out of
33:47habit, but there were no scissors hidden
33:49there anymore. She fell asleep holding
33:51her stuffed unicorn and I stood in the
33:52doorway watching her breathe peacefully.
33:54We'd won this fight and she was finally
33:56free to just be a little girl who liked
33:58pretty ribbons. Well folks, that's going
33:59to wrap it up for today. Thanks for
34:01letting me wonder about all this with
34:02you. It's always interesting sharing
34:04these thoughts together. Subscribe for
34:06more content like

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