11 disabled children found in cages in Ohio; caretakers deny neglect

WAKEMAN, Ohio -- Sheriff's deputies found 11 children locked in cages less than 3 1/2 feet high inside a home, but a couple denied they had abused or neglected the children.\nA judge on Monday put the children -- who range in age from 1 to 14 and who have various disabilities, including autism -- in foster homes.\nThe children were found in nine cages built into the walls of the house near this small city in northern Ohio, according to the Huron County Sheriff's Office. They had no blankets or pillows, and the cages were rigged with alarms that sounded if opened, Lt. Randy Sommers said.\nThe children told authorities they slept in the cages -- 40 inches high and 40 inches deep -- at night. Doors to some of the cages were blocked with heavy furniture.\nSharen and Mike Gravelle are adoptive or foster parents for all 11 children, officials said. Prosecutors were reviewing the case, but no charges had been filed as of Monday night.\nA children's services investigator saw one of the children in a cage Friday, Sommers said. The sheriff's office obtained a warrant and returned to the house that evening and removed the children.\nThe Gravelles do not have a listed telephone number.\nA woman who identified herself as Sharen Gravelle's mother but would not give her name said the children were happy in their new home.