From staff reports
An Oil City couple have been charged with endangering the welfare of three children in their care.
Oil City police said in a criminal complaint they received a report in April 2022 of a child who didn’t want to go home because she didn’t feel safe there.
Children and Youth Services provided police with several reports relating to this child as well as two other juveniles, who were all in the care of Roger L. Bosley, 44, and Courtnie M. Winters, 39, according to the complaint.
Some allegations were that the children were being locked into a room with a padlock with no way to exit in case of emergency, and with nothing in the room but pillows and blankets and no access to a bathroom, according to the complaint.
Also, as a form of punishment, the children were forced to stand against a wall with their arms extended for long periods, sometimes from the time they got home from school until the early hours of the morning, the complaint said.
One of the children said Winters slammed her head off the wall, causing a laceration that needed medical attention for which Bosley did not get medical care, and for which police saw the scar, the complaint said.
The complaint also said CYS reports indicated the children were often struck with items such as belts and utensils, and one child had bruises on the thighs consistent with being struck with a belt.
Bosley and Winters are both facing three felony counts of endangering the welfare of children and three misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person.
Winters is facing an additional misdemeanor count of simple assault.
Their preliminary hearings are scheduled Feb. 8 in Venango County Central Court.
