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U.S. NEWS Saturday 3 March 2018

Authorities: California family lived in filthy desert hovel

with plywood and plastic Inside, blankets were
sheeting. strewn everywhere and
And then came the shock- chairs were used to try to
ing discovery that a couple hold up the tarp ceiling. A
and their three children — makeshift kitchen was lit-
ages 11 to 14 — had been tered with empty bottles
living there for several years with cans of corn, peas and
without running water, soup stacked on wooden
bathrooms or electricity. shelves. Several holes on
The children's mother, the property were filled
Mona Kirk, 51, would sleep with feces, officials said.
alongside them in the ram- The children didn't appear
shackle dwelling, which is to have any obvious injuries
only about 4 feet high and and showed no outward
10 feet wide, said Cindy signs of malnutrition but
Bachman, spokeswoman were undergoing medi-
for the San Bernardino cal evaluations, Bachman
County Sheriff's Depart- said. "It was apparent they
ment. had not bathed in days,"
Their father, Daniel Panico, she said. "There was no run-
73, slept either in a trailer on ning water, no electricity,
the property with dozens of no bathroom facilities."
cats or in another vehicle, The parents were arrested
she said. "They were scraps Wednesday and have
This photo provided by the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office shows a ramshackle structure of plywood that were put been charged with three
where authorities say a couple, their three children and dozens of cats were living in filthy con-
ditions in unincorporated Joshua Tree in Southern California's Mojave Desert Thursday, March 1, together and then they counts of felony child
2018. had a tarp over it to keep abuse, district attorney’s
(San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office via AP) out the rain," Bachman said office spokesman Christo-
of the makeshift shelter on pher Lee said. A telephone
JOSHUA TREE, Calif. (AP) — the attention of a Southern ert earlier this week. As he the lot near Joshua Tree, number listed for the cou-
The mounds of trash, old California sheriff's deputy approached, he spotted about 125 miles (201 kilo- ple in public records was
toys and furniture caught passing through the des- a hovel cobbled together meters) east of Los Angeles. not in service Friday.q

Mother of 2 killed by nanny yells that defendant is 'evil'

By COLLEEN LONG In less than an hour, Krim too mentally ill to be re- gard the outburst. Krim told Krim showed up to the stu-
Associated Press would find Lulu and her sponsible for what she did. the panel she and Ortega, dio shortly before 5 p.m.,
NEW YORK (AP) — Jurors on 2-year-old son, Leo, dead Prosecutors say she knew hired part-time as an ex- and panicked when Lulu
Friday watched on surveil- in the bathroom of her exactly what she was do- tra pair of hands for the wasn't there. As she bends
lance footage as Marina apartment. ing. well-to-do stay-at-home- over her phone in footage,
Krim stood in the lobby of Krim finished her heart- As Krim left the courtroom, mom, had worked out their Nessie plays in a bright pink
a dance studio discover- wrenching testimony af- visibly exhausted and pal- schedule for Oct. 25, 2012. coat in the lobby. Then Krim
ing her 6-year-old daugh- ter about six hours on the pably angry, she turned Ortega, 55, was supposed grabs her hand and walks
ter, Lulu, was not at class. stand in the murder trial of to Ortega and screamed: to pick up Lulu from kin- out.
She bends over her phone, their former caregiver who "You're evil! You're evil! And dergarten and walk her to "I'm walking really fast
frantically texting the fam- prosecutors say grabbed you like this, you like this, dance class then go home home, and I'm panicking,"
ily's nanny. two kitchen knives and you're getting pleasure," to put Leo down for nap. she said. "I start running and
"Where's Lulu ... Donde Es- butchered the two children she cried. Krim would go to swimming I'm dragging Nessie. I hold
tas ... Where are you" she while Krim was blocks away "Get me out of here. Please, with her other daughter, her but she's pretty heavy.
wrote. at the studio. get me out of here. Get me 3-year-old Nessie, then and I'm like: I'm sorry Nessie I'm
But Yoselyn Ortega never Ortega has pleaded not out!" head home to meet Leo freaking out right now, we
responded. guilty; her lawyer says she's The judge told jurors to disre- and Ortega. gotta get home."q