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Upstate Man Arrested For Locking Up Kids After They Caused $40K In Damages To House
By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 17, 2013
Modified Jun 17, 2013
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 17, 2013
Modified Jun 17, 2013
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Drawing of being held captive by one of the alleged juvenile vandals (WHAM)
On Saturday, June 8th, a series of loud noises down the street led an upstate man to discover that his father-in-law's nearby home in Clyde, New York had been seriously vandalized—and the four pint-sized culprits were still inside. Jesse Daniels, 53, took the hammer-wielding boys, who were "two sets of brothers and cousins, ages 8 and 10," and locked them in a closet while his wife called the police. Now Daniels is facing charges of endangering the welfare of a child.
The Times of Wayne County has details about the damage:
The damage in the home ranged from paint splattered walls and cupboards to broken fixtures and wall outlets that had been kicked in. There were entire walls that had to be taken down due to the amount of hammer strikes through the drywall...[The boys were allegedly] breaking 14 double pane windows and smashing to the floor level a new toilet and fixtures which Jesse and [his father-in-law Richard Muoio] had recently installed. Just about every wall and room in the home was either splattered with paint or received the harsh end of hammers.
According to Clyde Village Police Officer Larry LaValley, one of the boys taken into custody was upset with Daniel’s wife for telling them to stay out of her yard earlier that day. The words “cunt” and “bitch” were painted on the walls.
The damage does look really bad.
The police say they told Daniels to stay out of the house until they could come, but Daniels wanted to make sure the kids stayed put, "So I grab the one hammer and the other three (boys) got hammers, now I don't know what to do here, I said you guys put that stuff down, what are you doing? Now they're startled because now they're caught. I was fortunate that they were in that room that had a closet, so I put them in the closet.... I said listen you guys are staying here until the police come, period.”
The boys told their parents that Daniels grabbed by them by the throat and threatened them, so the parents insisted on pressing charges against Daniels.
The boys were charged with burglary and criminal mischief, but, the Times of Wayne County points out, "Under New York State law, a juvenile can only be held liable for up to $1500 in damages. Richard Muoio could be awarded only a maximum of $6000 in restitution for all the damage done." Daniels says that he could smell gas and paint thinner in the house, "I'm thankful that it didn't light because with the oil-based paint, one of them children could've been torched in a second."
However, one of the boys' father told WHAM, "I understand they were in the wrong but there are other ways to handle it. He (Daniels) knew who the kids were, it's not like they were strangers and send the kids home and call the cops then. You don't sit there and torment them and tell them you're going to bash their skulls in with a hammer.”
The prosecutor will weigh whether he brings charges against Daniels. As for his father-in-law, Muoio is surprisingly optimistic, telling the Times, "I’ve already got some clean-up done. The walls I can paint and the windows can be replaced again. The important thing is that no one was hurt."
Tagged
clyde
jesse daniels
juvenile delinquents
upstate
vigilante justice
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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