An attorney for the oldest adult charged in a Vinton County child endangerment case requests a bond reduction

By: Thomas Billington
Posted on: Tuesday, July 7, 2026

< < Back to

McARTHUR, Ohio (WOUB) — One week after law enforcement removed 16 children in “deplorable” conditions from a Vinton County home, a lawyer representing one of the four adults arrested requested to have their bond modified.

Attorney Dorian Baum filed the motion Tuesday in the Vinton County Court of Common Pleas on behalf of his client Gary Siders Sr.

The motion states Siders Sr., the grandfather of the children, is “a 73-year-old man, who appears to have some significant health issues, who has very limited mobility, who exhibits concerns for both his mental health and his Competency to stand trial, and has no means to post any sort of bond.”

“If he’s not competent, he is not going to be easily prosecuted, if at all,” Baum told reporters after court proceedings Tuesday.

The motion requests Siders Sr.’s $300,000 cash or surety bond be modified to a recognizance bond.

“The Defendant assures the Court that he will comply with any additional requirements that the Probation Department or this Court may require of him”, according to the motion. Baum argues Siders Sr. should be out of jail to receive medical treatment and evaluations to determine his competency.

The prosecutor has seven days to file a response before the judge makes a ruling on the motion.

Siders Sr., along with Gary Siders Jr., Elizabeth Siders and Christina Siders face 16 counts of felony child endangerment each.

The children were found during a search of a home in the village of Hamden for an unrelated investigation.

Officials claim the children were found in a roughly 12×12 room contaminated with human feces.

They were taken to medical facilities around the state and are now in the temporary custody of children’s services.

Defendants waived their preliminary hearings

All four defendants were scheduled to appear in court Tuesday, but their attorneys informed the judge they chose to waive their preliminary hearings.

After speaking with the judge, Baum and Elizabeth Siders’ attorney Thomas Stolly talked with reporters.

They said they are waiting for the state’s evidence against their clients and again asked the public to let the process play out before passing judgement.

Stolly said it’s too early to respond to public questions as to whether his client is also a victim.

“I have previously stated that she does not necessarily characterize herself as a victim,” he said. “But the investigation from the prosecutor’s office, and from my office, is ongoing.”

Records from the Mason County Courthouse in West Virginia show Elizabeth was 15 when she married a then 18-year-old Gary Siders Jr in 2008. They lived across the river in Gallia County at the time.

The case may appear before a grand jury sometime later this month.

Vinton County’s prosecutor wants Special Attorneys appointed

Vinton County Prosecutor William Archer filed motions in the case seeking assistance from outside agencies.

He filed one motion to request Highland County Prosecutor Anneka Collins be appointed as a special prosecutor. The other motion seeks to appoint Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson and Assistant Attorney General Kara Keating as special prosecutors.

The motions obtained by WOUB only involve Elizabeth Siders’ case and would have the special prosecutors “assist in the investigation and/or prosecution as [the Vinton County prosecutor] deems prudent…”

Wilson has been involved with the case since it was brought to the public’s attention, announcing the arrests. He has repeatedly offered the state’s full support in the case.