A decade before her arrest on child abuse charges, Elizabeth Siders, one of four adults charged in connection with the discovery of 16 children living in squalid conditions, posted a request on her husband's Facebook account asking that her photos be removed from the platform.
In a June 5, 2014, post, Siders wrote, “this is elizabeth i dont want any one putting pictures of me on facebook every one if you have any pictures of me on here please take them off here !” The post was made on Gary Siders Jr.'s Facebook account. Images associated with the case include a booking photo of Elizabeth Siders, 33, with dark hair and a somber expression, contrasting with a resurfaced photograph from her mother showing a younger Siders with blonde hair and a smile. This earlier photo, posted by her mother Lori Russell in August 2020, was accompanied by a birthday message.
Elizabeth Siders, her husband Gary Siders Jr., 36, and her parents-in-law, Gary Siders Sr., 73, and Christina Siders, 67, were each charged on June 30 with 16 counts of child endangerment. The charges stem from the discovery of 16 children, aged 18 months to 18 years, living in what Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson described as a "house of horrors." Wilson stated that the conditions were beyond imagining and that the children appeared "almost feral."
Authorities reported that the children were never enrolled in school, had limited communication skills, and some could not speak. The oldest child, an 18-year-old female, is severely developmentally disabled and unable to write her name.
Elizabeth Siders was 15 when she married Gary Siders Jr., then 18, in West Virginia in 2008. The couple's oldest child was reportedly born two months later. Relatives have stated they lost contact with Elizabeth Siders after her marriage into the Siders family.
Siders is currently held on a $300,000 bond. Her attorney has requested a recognizance bond, arguing she has no prior criminal record and that her primary desire is to reunite with her children, which she understands is contingent on appearing in court. The filing suggests she is no longer a threat now that the children have been removed from her and her husband's care. The state is expected to allocate $1 million to Vinton County to aid in the care of the children.