A Kentucky couple has been sentenced to two decades in prison after being found guilty of appalling child abuse in their deplorable home. Disturbingly, one child resorted to sucking on insulation for hydration, according to reports.

Mary Hall, 44, became the legal guardian of her late sister’s three children following a fatal car accident in 2018. The children’s father was imprisoned on manslaughter charges, as reported by WYMT.

After relocating to Pike County, Kentucky, with the children, Hall began a relationship with Jerome Norman, also 44. Soon after, teachers and school administrators started observing alarming signs of abuse, such as unexplained bruises and erratic eating patterns in at least one child.

The situation took a grave turn in 2025 when one child returned to school after a prolonged absence due to a winter storm. The child appeared malnourished, bruised, and had a chipped tooth, prompting prosecutors to take action.

A swift investigation by the Kentucky State Police revealed that the children had endured conditions akin to torture. They were confined to a room locked from the outside, with windows sealed shut.

One child, who seemed to bear the brunt of the abuse, had to resort to the desperate measure of sucking on wall insulation in search of water, according to Amber Hunt, the guardian appointed to oversee their care.

Officials claimed the couple — who forced the children to do manual labor and punished them in a number of ways, including withholding food — were not doing it out of a lack of resources.

The children were taught to hide the truth from others and the child who endured the brunt of the abuse was not allowed to go on class trips or have cake or pizza with his fellow peers, Pike County Commonwealth’s Attorney Bill Slone claimed.

Due to their triggers and mental states from vicious ongoing abuse, the three young children are sadly unable to be placed in a home together, according to an advocate.

The sick couple entered a blind plea deal after attorneys said the details of the case would be too emotional for a jury to see past. But they did ask the judge for leniency with their sentence.

Both Hall and Norman were sentenced to the maximum of what was agreed — 20 years each for one count of criminal child abuse in the first degree, and five years for each count of second-degree child abuse, to run congruent for a total of 20 years, the outlet reported.

“Our laws don’t allow for cruel and unusual punishment, even to prisoners,” Slone said. “So, they’ll never be subjected to the kind of punishment that they subjected those children to.”

Slone praised the staff at school for speaking up, saying the outcome could have been far more heartbreaking if they had not alerted the authorities.