- Robert and Alysia McIntosh are accused of aggravated child abuse in Taylorsville.
- Robert McIntosh allegedly zip-tied his daughter to prevent self-harm and removed her bed ladder.
- The couple allegedly forced their daughter to sleep in the garage.
TAYLORSVILLE — A man arrested last week for allegedly making his 11-year-old daughter sleep in the garage to experience being homeless has now been charged with zip-tying the young girl.
Robert James McIntosh, 46, of Taylorsville, was charged Monday in 3rd District Court with two counts of aggravated child abuse, a third-degree felony. Both he and his wife, Alysia Lynae McIntosh, 46, were arrested Friday by Taylorsville police for investigation of aggravated child abuse for what appears to be a separate incident.
According to charging documents filed Monday, the young girl was scratching her face and causing it to bleed, "so McIntosh found zip ties and zip-tied her to (a) bed." She said McIntosh then removed the ladder from her bunkbed so she couldn't climb onto the bed, and she hung there, unable to touch the ground, for 10 to 15 minutes."
When questioned, McIntosh told police that he zip-tied his daughter one time for less than 10 minutes to stop her from scratching herself. Alysia McIntosh "stated she knew McIntosh zip-tied (their daughter) to her bed but said it was a 'moment of desperation' when he had been home alone with (her)," the charges state.
The girl "also recalled another time when McIntosh zip-tied her and described that he zip-tied her hands behind her back and had her sit on the floor. McIntosh told (the girl) not to move, 'or they would get tighter,'" and that the zip ties were so tight that "she had red lines from the zip-ties and had to put Band-Aids on them," according to the charges. Robert McIntosh denied zip-tying his daughter's hands behind her back.
The McIntoshes were arrested Friday and accused of locking their daughter out of the house and making her sleep in the garage because they were upset with the girl for talking to neighbors about the zip-tying, according to a police booking affidavit.
"Officers responded to the garage, where they observed (the girl) crawling out from under a truck bed cover. They also observed that (her) blanket was very, very, very thin, which was described as the thickness of a credit card, and she was using a shop knee pad as a pillow," a police booking affidavit states. "Officers noted that it was dark and very cold outside and (the girl) was not dressed for the temperatures."
The girl told police that she was not allowed inside the house to use the bathroom and that her parents "threatened to call the police if (she) went inside the residence. She described that she didn't have a coat and was freezing," according to the affidavit.
The girl's mother "denied that (her daughter) was being punished or reprimanded, and stated that they were teaching (her) how to be homeless" after the girl threatened to run away, the affidavit says. "Alysia McIntosh said that (the girl) kept pushing so she sent her to the garage and told (her) that the floor is cement so it's like the sidewalk and the trust is bumpy like the sidewalk and that she needed to go outside to understand how cold it's going to be and how scary it is."
Police also noted that Alysia McIntosh is "a teacher at an elementary school."
Child abuse resources:
- Utah Domestic Violence Coalition operates a confidential statewide, 24-hour domestic abuse hotline at 1-800-897-LINK (5465). Resources are also available online: udvc.org. The statewide child abuse and neglect hotline is 1-855-323-DCFS (3237).
- The Utah Division of Child and Family Services offers counseling, teaches parenting skills and conflict resolution and can connect families with community resources. Its goal is to keep children with their family when it is "possible and safe." Visit dcfs.utah.gov/contact-us/ or call 801-538-4100.
- The Christmas Box House acts as a temporary shelter for children and can provide them with new clothing and shoes, among other services. Call the Salt Lake office at 801-747-2201 or the Ogden office at 801-866-0350.
