A Cedar Springs father has been sentenced to a minimum of 28 months in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree child abuse for locking his 7-year-old son in a wooden box. The box where the child was contained measured three feet by four feet, lacked blankets, and pillows, and was without windows, the son was made to sleep on a piece of foam, food was withheld, and physical punishments such as running and exposure to cold were employed by the father, Michael Rus, and his girlfriend, Jessica Ann Kilgore, WZZM13 reports.
A report from Child Protective Services triggered a welfare check leading to the discovery of the abuse, during which the boy was found shirtless inside the box described as a makeshift room, according to MLive. During Rus’s sentencing, his attorney argued for a reduced jail sentence claiming he aimed to improve his parenting skills, getting involved in a parent treatment plan, and attending parenting classes, also noting Rus’s stable employment.
The judge, Hon. George "Jay" Quist, deemed a "mid-guideline sentence" was appropriate citing Rus's history including a prior conviction for fourth-degree child abuse and additional misdemeanors; he had hoped for a lesser 12-month sentence, but Judge Quist handed down a term of 28 months to 10 years with Rus receiving credit for 106 days already served, as detailed in WOODTV.
Kilgore, who also pleaded guilty, contrastingly received a sentence of time served, which amounted to 131 days, and three years probation due to her limited criminal background and having testified against Rus her assistance in prosecuting Rus, as Judge Quist noted from the bench, as per WOODTV, "I think the court issued a lighter sentence on that co-defendant. I do not believe she had much of a criminal record, if any, as distinguished from Mr. Rus."
