By Wayne Gates
More court documents have been filed in the case of Margaret and Charles Breeze.
The two are facing multiple felony charges relating to allegations that they starved and abused an 11 year old girl and locked her in a separate trailer behind their home.
The two were originally indicted in 2019, Margaret Breeze on Oct. 31 and Charles Breeze on Nov. 14. Both were charged with two counts each of Kidnapping, two counts of Endangering Children and one count of Felonious Assault.
An additional charge of Tampering With Evidence, a third degree felony, was filed against the couple in January. Brown County Prosecuting Attorney Zac Corbin has since asked Common Pleas Judge Scott Gusweiler to consolidate that charge into the previous case.
The new court documents include a list of potential evidence and witnesses, as well as a legal document known as a Bill of Particulars filed in both cases on Feb. 28 with the court.
A Bill of Particulars is sometimes requested of prosecutors by defense attorneys to learn more about the allegations against their clients.
The bill discusses alleged behavior by the Breeze’s between September of 2016 and September of 2019.
Regarding the Endangering Children counts, it is alleged that the Breeze’s isolated the victim “by removing her from school and failing to take her to pediatric checkups” and “did during this time withhold proper nutrition from the child.”
The bill also alleges that the victim was “found in an extremely malnourished condition” and was hospitalized for ten days in Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.
She was treated for Failure to Thrive and severe protein malnutrition.
The bill also states that the victim “was diagnosed with Kwashiokor, a condition seen most often in underdeveloped countries.” The victim was also said to have lost nine pounds in the three years in question.
The state also alleges that Charles and Margaret Breeze withheld food from the victim as a means of punishment and “was subjected to frequent and intense emotional and psychological abuse.”
Regarding the Kidnapping charge, the state alleges that the Breeze’s restrained the liberty of the victim “for the purpose of terrorizing or inflicting serious physical harm.”
The bill alleges that the Breeze’s isolated the victim “to avoid detection of abuse by mandatory reporters” and that she “was not permitted to take part in many family activities or other events as were the other children in the home.”
The bill also states that the victim “would at times be locked in a detached trailer, kept in diapers, deprived of food, and watched under video surveillance that was fed back into the main residence.”
The victim is said by the state to have gained over thirty pounds since she was removed from the Breeze home.
Regarding the Tampering With Evidence charge, the state is alleging that the Breeze’s “altered and manipulated evidence pertaining to the detached trailer…to give the appearance that (the victim) was at no time being locked in the trailer. This includes, but is not limited to, switching locking mechanisms on a door to the trailer. The Defendant(s) engaged in this behavior after learning that Brown County CPS was investigating suspected abuse of the child.”
Regarding potential evidence and witnesses in the case, the Brown County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has shared a large number of documents with defense attorneys.
Those documents include reports from the Brown County Department of Job and Family Services, medical records, an incident report from the Brown County Sheriff’s Office, medical records on two other children and written statements from four witnesses.
Twenty potential witnesses from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital are also on the list.
Meanwhile, Gusweiler is reviewing what Margaret Breeze’s Attorney Nick Ring calls “hundreds of documents” that could also be introduced as evidence in the case.
Ring filed a motion with Gusweiler asking him to review the records because “Defendant believes these records contain information favorable to the defense and relevant to the issue of Defendant’s innocence.”
The records are from the Department of Job and Family Services of Brown and Hamilton counties, Brown County Juvenile Court and the Western Brown and Ripley school systems.
The motion also asks for access to records of “Prevention, Retention and Contingency monies paid to Charles and/or Margaret Breeze through any funds administered by Brown County Job and Family Services, Child Focus, Family Recovery Service (FRS) records, all agency dictation involving (victim) beginning 2013 to present, all logs of persons being seen at Brown County Job and Family Services with Margaret or Charles Breeze listed, and any other relevant records.”
Margaret Breeze is scheduled for another pre-trial hearing on March 17 and Charles Breeze has a pre-trial hearing scheduled for March 19.
