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An Indiana dad has been found guilty after his six-month-old son nearly died from more than 50 rat bites at their vermin-infested home, court records say.
David Schonabaum, 32, was convicted of three counts of child neglect for his young son and two other children in the home, in what the county prosecutor branded a “shocking” case.
Vanderburgh County Prosecutor Diana Moers revealed the six-month-old is now permanently disfigured after suffering the “horrific rat bites” while lying in his bassinet before emergency services arrived at the home in Evansville on September 13, 2023.
“When paramedics and police arrived the infant was laying in his crib in a pool of blood and the bites were so bad on his body — including his face, mouth, and extremities — that they left bone showing on one hand,” she per the Evansville Courier & Press.
In their closing arguments, the prosecution argued it was Schonabaum’s responsibility to maintain a safe and healthy home for his children, but instead allowed the conditions to worsen “knowingly.”
They also claimed the Department of Child Services (DCS) had been telling him to improve the home for two years before his baby suffered the harrowing injuries, and that a pest control specialist gave him 5-to-10 reusable rat traps on two different occasions, with no sign of them being used.
Schonabaum was arrested with his wife and the children’s mother, Angel Schonabaum, 29, as well as their aunt, Delaina Thurman, one year ago.
Thurman, David Schonabaum’s sister, has two children of her own and was sentenced to two years of probation in January after reaching a plea deal on neglect charges.
The Evansville Police Department (EPD) arrived at the home after David Schonabaum reported the baby needed emergency medical assistance after they woke to find him “covered in blood,” his fingers appearing to be “chewed off”.
Doctors found more than 50 rodent bites on his forehead, cheek and nose alone. More were down his arms, legs, feet and toes.
The index and pinky fingers on his right hand were “missing the flesh halfway down each finger,” police said.
After stabilizing the baby, first responders took him to a local hospital. Upon arrival, his temperature was around 93.5 and his blood pressure was 50/30.
His condition was described as so severe he was airlifted by helicopter to a more specialized hospital in Indianapolis. Doctors described it as a “near fatal event” to police.
“The child had lost so much blood that the child actually had to have blood transfusions as well. Several fingers had to be amputated,” EPD Sergeant Anna Gray told WEHT.
“The only reason that we even knew about it was because the dad woke up and the baby was covered in blood,” she continued. “It’s kind of one of those situations where they were just not paying attention.”
Police said the room where both the baby and his parents slept was overwhelmed by rubbish and rat feces, his bassinet and blanket smeared with blood.
They also found rodent footprints in the blood on the diaper disposal bin, according to the affidavit.
Angel Schonabaum has yet to stand trial.
