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Salem shuts down squalid house Naked toddler found in street led to discovery

By James A. Kimble
Staff writer
Published: July 7, 2008

SALEM — Police said they expect to charge the parents of five children after sealing off their home because human feces, rotted food and dirty diapers were found throughout the house.

Salem's health officer and police inspected the split-level home at 31 Twinbrook Ave. yesterday and deemed it unfit for habitation.

Police were called to the neighborhood Friday at 8 p.m., after a neighbor more than an eighth of a mile away found a naked 2-year-old girl walking down the road. The neighbor took the girl inside and called police, telling them she had been with them for more than 20 minutes, police said.

Officers found the girl's mother in the street, looking for her daughter, according to police Capt. Shawn Patten. The father came outside shortly afterward.

Police said they temporarily shut down the home Friday night after discovering squalid conditions. The children, varying in age from 2 to 9, are being cared for by relatives until the home can be opened again, police said.

"Anytime you see children living in conditions such as these, there's an immediate feeling of sadness that comes to mind, especially from the officers who first came to the scene," Patten said. "We want to make sure these kids are all right and being taken care of."

Police said the outside of the home was littered with broken toys, a mattress and other trash. Patten said the parents could not answer how many children were supposed to be in the home.

Officers found two other children home, a 9-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy. Two other girls belonging to the couple, ages 5 and 9, were not home, Patten said.

When police went inside the house, they were hit with a strong odor of rotting food and trash. They spotted human feces and used diapers on the floor throughout the home, police said.

Rotting food was found in many rooms in the house and ants covered some of the kitchen countertops, police said. Raw sewage was backed up in the toilet and sink in the upstairs bathroom.

"The conditions in there are obviously very unsanitary," Salem Health Officer Brian Lockard said after inspecting the home yesterday.

Lockard said he could not comment in detail about the house's condition, citing the police investigation. He said police asked him to issue a report on the home, which includes potential code violations and what it would take to make the house liveable again.

The state's Division of Children, Youth and Families is conducting its own investigation.

The house is owned by Kim Forzese of Peterborough, according to town property records. Lockard said the family living there was renting the house. Forzese could not be reached for comment.

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