Homeschooling’s 

Invisible Children

2 Children of Dwayne and Pamela Hardy

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.

Hardy

Investigators responding to an anonymous tip found two children, aged 6 and 9, malnourished and scarred from beatings. Dwayne and Pamela Hardy had adopted the two children six months earlier, and homeschooled the two just as they had their four biological children, who were now grown. The couple “disciplined” the children by frequently depriving them of food, locking them in their rooms, and beating them with wooden paddles and belts until they bled, and then beating them again before the wounds had time to heal, leaving permanent scars. Most of the abuse was carried out by Pamela while Dwayne was at work. The couple’s supporters insisted that they were loving Christian parents who were simply raising the children according to their strong Christian values. Dwayne was convicted of neglect, and Pamela plead no contest to charges of both neglect and aggravated child abuse.

Date: August 2010
Location: Seminole County, Florida

Documents: Date:
Adoptive Parents Charged With Child Cruelty 2010-08-12
Parents accused of torturing adopted children 2010-08-12
Parents accused of starving, beating adopted children 2010-08-13
Couple Accused Of Torturing 2 Adopted Children 2010-08-13
10-year-old boy: My adoptive parents spanked me until I bled, kept me away from food 2011-06-14
Jurors find adoptive father guilty of child neglect 2011-06-15
Adoptive dad guilty of child neglect 2011-06-16
Altamonte Springs adoptive mom enters child-abuse plea 2011-06-22
Accused Abusive Adoptive Parents Sentenced 2011-08-01
Child torture: Adoptive parents accused of abuse face sentencing today 2011-08-01