Homeschooling’s 

Invisible Children

3 Children of John and Sonja Kluth

Content note: Case narratives include descriptions of severe violence inflicted on children, including abuse and neglect, sexual violence, torture, and murder, as well as mentions of suicide and domestic violence. They also include photos of victims and perpetrators of violence.

Kluth

John Edward Kluth and Sonja Kay Kluth beat, choked, whipped, and burned their three adopted children, two boys aged 15 and 11, and a 9 year old girl. The Kluths also forced the children to eat pet food, kept the boys padlocked in a storm shelter with a bucket to urinate in each night for months, and locked the oldest in a dog crate for hours on end. The children were homeschooled and the family lived in Oklahoma. The children’s abuse was discovered when they ran away from home and were found sleeping in a box. All three children were illiterate. John and Sonja Kluth were sentenced to life in prison.

Date: February 23, 2011
Location: Yukon, Oklahoma

Documents: Date:
Tears From Yukon Couple As Boy Testifies About Abuse 2011-06-29
Prosecutors: Mother In Child Abuse Case ‘Wanted Blood’ 2011-02-24
Yukon Parents Accused of Child Abuse, Feeding Children Dog, Cat Food 2011-02-24
Adoptive parents charged with child abuse, neglect in Yukon, OK 2011-02-24
Oklahoma couple accused in abuse received $4,500 a month from Wisconsin for adopted children, sherrif says 2011-02-25
Sheriff: Three adopted children suffered horrific abuse 2011-02-25
Wisconsin paid torture suspects despite child abuse report 2011-02-25
Hearing date set for couple accused of abusing adopted children 2011-05-10
Couple accused of disturbing abuse on adopted children 2011-06-29
Couple charged with abusing adopted kids 2011-06-30
GRAPHIC: Son testifies against Yukon parents in abuse/neglect trial 2012-06-12
Yukon couple sentenced in abuse case 2012-07-25