Mom, boyfriend allegedly locked 5-year-old in room and harnessed him to the floor

Monica Hall

Dennis Couch

Two people are charged in Rhea County, Tenn., in a case of child abuse.

Authorities say a 5-year-old developmentally challenged boy was being alternately locked in a room and harnessed to a bolt in the floor of a home in Evensville, Tenn., over the last several months.

The discovery landed the boy's mother and her boyfriend behind bars on child abuse charges.

Monica Hall, 39, the boy's mother, and Dennis Couch, 42, Hall's boyfriend of four or five years, each were charged Monday afternoon with aggravated child abuse, neglect and endangerment in connection with the investigation. Couch also is charged with initiation of the manufacture of methamphetamine and unlawful drug paraphernalia uses and activities, Rhea County Sheriff's Office investigator Rocky Potter said.

Potter said today that the situation at the Evensville home was unlike anything he had ever seen.

The investigation was triggered by a report from a family member or friend who had been in the home and a hotline referral "of a 5-year-old mentally challenged boy being harnessed to a bolt in the middle of the floor," Potter said.

"The room consisted of no carpet and just a small mattress," Potter said.

The detective said Hall allowed deputies inside the home and told them the harness was in a hallway of the home.

"The harness was fashioned from a medium-size dog harness and Couch's belt with some electrical tape," Potter said. It was made to fit around the boy's chest.

"For several hours, off and on throughout the past couple or three months, sometimes overnight, they advised that they fastened him to that," he said.

A three-foot-long length of cable restrained the boy to the floor when he was attached to the bolt there, he said.

The boy is unable to communicate because of his disability, Potter said. He had a busted lip and some bruises on his face.

Two other small children in the home were removed, along with the boy who was harnessed, and placed with other family members until a permanent arrangement is found, officials said.

The Tennessee Department of Children's Services had contact with Hall in the past about the same boy, Potter said. Couch was not involved on the previous occasions Children's Services officials had contact with Hall.

The boy is going to a medical facility today for a wellness check, part of the routine treatment of children in such situations, the detective said.

"In all the years I worked child abuse I thought I'd seen and heard of every crime and then this," Potter said. "This is the first one that had a restraint device."

Hall is being held on a $100,000 bond at the Rhea County Jail. Couch is held on a $125,000 bond. Both are scheduled to appear in Rhea County General Sessions Court for an initial appearance June 20.

Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.