Couple who locked adopted children in bathroom for months as punishment charged

                    George and Nancie Barnes          (C)WatertownPoliceDepartment

A Connecticut couple have been charged after they locked their adopted children in the bathroom as punishment. George and Nancie Barnes are accused of confining the kids to the bathroom for as long as three months in an extreme form of discipline. The couple had five adopted children between ages 9 and 18 in their Watertown home, reported The Hartford Courant. A 15-year-old girl told police she was confined to the bathroom from September through December, where she was forced to stand up and read. The teenage girl said she was allowed to eat Thanksgiving dinner with the rest of the family at the dining room table, but was banned from talking to anyone else.
George Barnes, 45, told police that the girl was being punished for "doing the same things over and over," which he said included stealing, talking back, "giving attitude" and not listening. His wife Nancie, 47, added that the couple used the bathroom as a "timeout" room, and chose it because the house was too small to use any other room to the punishment. She added that she knew it looked “terrible” and said she wished “she had another bedroom to help out."
The couple allegedly used baby monitors to make sure the children remained standing while isolated in the bathroom. The children were allowed to go to school and did not have to sleep in the bathroom, but they did have to eat meals there. State Department of Children and Families officials have removed the children from the home. The pair were charged with two counts of cruelty to persons, risk of injury to a minor and second-degree unlawful restraint. They were freed after posting a $35,000 bond each.