The couple is accused of subjecting the little boy to sick punishments
A seven-year-old from Wisconsin has died a horrific death at the hands of his guardians and his teenage "brother", who are accused of torturing and killing the boy because he could not recite verses from the Bible.
Little Ethan Hauschultz, according to the indictment against the three arrested, expired last April after being "buried alive" in the snow, while he was under the care of Timothy and Tina Hauschultz.
The couple is accused of subjecting the little boy to sick punishments, for example, forcing him to hold a large log weighing 20 kilos for two hours every day for a week. These punishments were inflicted on little Ethan for various trivial "transgressions," such as not remembering to recite passages from the Bible that forced him to memorize.
The sadistic couple had taken custody of the 7-year-old after a court order and it is not clear what kind of kinship they had with their victim. The Hauschultz 15-year-old son is also accused of torturing the little boy. In one case, he allegedly kicked and punched Ethan at least 100 times and then held his head with his foot in a puddle of water.
According to the medical examiner's report, Ethan's death last April was due to a combination of hypothermia and severe head, abdomen and chest injuries. The little one also had broken ribs, as found at the autopsy.
Authorities believe the couple buried the child alive in the snow, as part of yet another sadistic punishment for not knowing the Bible from the outside. When he was finally taken out of his "frozen coffin", the child had lost consciousness. Although he was taken to the hospital, the little guy never recovered.
The couple's 15-year-old son is charged with first-degree murder, his 48-year-old father with murder and 35-year-old Tina with exposing a minor to danger and failing to prevent bodily harm.
The trial of the three accused is expected to begin today.