Inset: Kandy Thompson (Jones County Jail). Background: Thompson allegedly locking her daughter in a dog kennel on Saturday (KTAB/KRBC).
In a shocking case from Texas, a 60-year-old woman stands accused of mistreating her 22-year-old daughter with special needs by allegedly confining her in a dog kennel located in their backyard.
Authorities arrested Kandy Thompson on Tuesday, charging her with a range of serious offenses. These include aggravated kidnapping, causing intentional harm to a disabled person, and unlawful restraint, among other serious allegations.
The case against Thompson unfolded after a neighbor, alarmed by a troubling interaction with Thompson, contacted the Anson Police Department on Saturday. The neighbor, who managed to capture part of the incident on his cellphone, requested a welfare check on the woman’s daughter, as reported by KTXS, the ABC and CW affiliate in Sweetwater.
ABC affiliate KRBC and CBS affiliate KTAB, both based in Abilene, shared the footage online. The video depicts Thompson in her yard, seemingly locking her daughter inside a chain-link kennel draped with a tarp. Disturbingly, the victim appears to be in distress, showing signs of hyperventilation while expressing fear by saying, “I’m scared, mother.”
In the video, Thompson, wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with “I’m one of those crazy people,” attempts to communicate with the neighbor, though her words are initially unclear from the recording.
Thompson, who is wearing a T-shirt that says “I’m one of those crazy people,” then addresses the neighbor, though it is hard to decipher what she initially says to him.
“You lock your kid in a dog kennel,” the neighbor says.
“Yes, because she’s tearing up everything and p—ing on everything,” Thompson appears to say before the neighbor cuts her off and asks if she really thinks locking up a special-needs kid in a dog kennel is a good idea. At that point, the victim can again be heard repeatedly screaming that she is scared and a dog can be heard growling and barking nearby.
“Do you not hear her?” the neighbor asks before declaring, “You have no remorse.”
Police arrived shortly after that exchange and the neighbor then tried to calm the victim. She tells him she is forced into the cage “a lot,” saying it makes her feel like “she’s not worth anything.”
Thompson was released from detention Monday, but arrested on additional charges Tuesday.
The Anson Police Department said that in the days since Thompson’s initial arrest, investigators had “completed additional interviews, reviewed statements, and evaluated all evidence collected on the scene” that led to the new charges.
In addition to the aforementioned charges, she is facing counts of child endangerment and assault causing bodily injury.
KRBC and KTAB reported that over the last 10 years, Thompson and her late husband had fostered more than 50 special-needs children. The Texas Department of Family Protective Services told the stations that the Thompsons likely cared for the children through some kind of organization, because they did not foster any kids through DPS.
The stations further reported that Thompson was being held without bond as of Wednesday morning. It was not immediately clear when she was scheduled to make her next appearance in court.
