An Arkansas couple facing nearly 300 child abuse charges have decided to take a plea deal in the case involving the “torture” of a 15-year-old boy.
Daniel Alan Wright and Jacklyn Machelle Barnett were initially arrested in 2024 and charged with dozens of counts, including false imprisonment, child endangerment, permitting child abuse, and kidnapping, KFSM reports.
Police were called the couple’s apartment building in Mountain Home after a witness reported hearing cries for help.
They found the naked teenager in a bathroom with door ratchet-strapped shut. The boy said he slept on a pallet in the bathroom.
“He stated that he is only let out to go to school. He also stated that the only time he gets to eat is at school,” an affidavit said, adding that the victim was “low-functioning and small for his age.”
According to KTLO, officer also found two other children — ages 10 and 11 — who answered the door. Those children said there parents were working and said they had no idea the 15 year old was locked in the bathroom.
Barnett and Wright initially blamed the younger children for the ratchet-closed door but later changed their story and said they ratcheted the door closed because of a leaky faucet.
The boy told investigators that Barnett was his mother and Wright his stepfather, but detectives later determined that he was not biologically related to either of the adults, although one of them was his legal guardian, KFSM said.
Investigators also determined that 29 separate cases of maltreatment of the boy had been opened since 2013. All of them were declared unsubstantiated and subsequently closed.
In 2025, the couple was rearrested with Barnett now facing new charges that included rape, sexual assault, and sexual indecency with a child.
The affidavits in the new case were sealed.
On May 18, Wright pleaded guilty to five counts of false imprisonment, one count of child endangerment, one count of permitting child abuse, and one count of kidnapping. Barnett pleaded guilty to five counts of false imprisonment, one count of child endangerment, one count of permitting child abuse, one count of kidnapping, and one count of second degree sexual assault.
More than 100 of Wright’s charges were dropped, while 147 charges against Barnett were dropped.
The sentences for the various charges will be served concurrently, so the couple faces only 20 years in prison with seven years suspended.
During the sentencing hearing, Baxter County Prosecuting Attorney David Ethredge called the abuse suffered by the teen “horrific,” KTLO reported.
“For years, these children were abused, manipulated, and exploited,” Ethredge reportedly said. “Rather than providing love, safety, and protection, these defendants chose greed and self-interest.”
The state Department of Human Services later admitted it had erred in dropping 29 complaints about the couple and reportedly made changes.
It’s not clear where the children are now, although the now-16-year-old boy had been expected to testify against Wright and Barnett at their trial, and substantial discussion had gone on in court about his being in close proximity to his torturers.
Featured image: Daniel Alan Wright and Jacklyn Machelle Barnett/Baxter County Sheriff’s Office
