A couple who severely abused their twin daughters pleaded guilty before a county judge Monday.
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Michael K. Shales, 31, and Melissa A. Shales, 26, both of Tullytown, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of children before Judge Raymond McHugh.
Sentencing for the couple has been pushed until later this year.
In court on Monday, McHugh revoked the couple’s bail and deferred sentencing for 30 to 60 days.
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Court papers laid out a disturbing case of abuse and neglect at the hands of the Shales inside their apartment at 555 Main Street in Tullytown.
The twin girls, who were 2 months old at the time, and their 2-year-old brother were taken away from the Shales by authorities last March when police began probing possible child abuse, according to court documents.
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Police said the the two infant girls suffered various injuries at the hands of their parents, with one suffering a seriously injured leg. A doctor who talked with investigators reported that both of the girls were undernourished and had various injuries that were indicative of shaking.
During the course of the investigation, Melissa Shales told investigators the girl’s leg “popped out” after she had pulled the girl up by it. Authorities learned Melissa Shales and Michael Shales had tried to twist and pop the girl’s leg back into place.
Hours before a medical call brought authorities to the Shales’ apartment and they uncovered the “deplorable conditions,” one of the girl’s was injured when Melissa Shales’ lost her grip of the baby and tossed her into the cast iron rail of a day bed. The couple checked out their daughter and noticed a leg injury but did nothing, court papers stated.
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During interviews with police, Melissa Shales “admitted to doing certain things out of anger to the children in front of Michael to get a reaction out of him.”
Police said that .223 rifle ammunition was also found lying on the floor. The concern was the 2-year-old boy could pick up the rounds.
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The Doylestown Intelligencer reported one of the girls still requires use of a feed tube and both are still not yet able to walk on their own.
The Shales remain in prison awaiting sentencing.
