According to a news release issued by the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office on Monday, Oct. 19, Troy Hall was sentenced to 45 years in prison following a plea agreement for abusing and starving his girlfriend's son.
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His girlfriend, Angela Cassidy, was sentenced to 40 years in prison for her involvement in the abuse.
Hall and Cassidy were charged with first degree felony offense of injury to a child.
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"Hall and Cassidy are rightfully headed to prison, and with these sentences, the little boy they so callously abused will have the opportunity to grow into adulthood free of their influence," said District Attorney Brett Ligon. "We are grateful for everyone who did what they could to reach a just outcome here. Our prayers are now with this young man in the difficult days that lie ahead as he recovers from this horrible abuse."
Investigators said in May 2019, Cassidy's son escaped from an RV trailer where he was being held and ran to a neighbor's house.
The child told the neighbor that Hall had choked him, tied him up and beat him with paint sticks. The boy also said Hall made him wear diapers and refused to feed him.
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When first responders arrived after the neighbor called 911, investigators said the child weighed only 50 pounds and had a diaper taped to his body with packing tape.
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Investigators also said the boy had a bandage covering a large wound on his wrist.
The boy was then sent to Texas Children's Hospital where he was treated for his injuries and malnourishment.
"With proper care, the child quickly began to gain weight," read the news release. "Acting quickly, law enforcement arrested Hall the same day the child escaped."
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Warning signs of human trafficking
During the course of the investigation, officials said Cassidy was taking her son to clinics and lying to doctors to cover up the abuse.
They also determined Cassidy had numerous opportunities to alert someone, but failed to do so.
"Cassidy had not enrolled her son in school for two years and allowed him to endure this torture and abuse behind closed doors," said officials.
Hall and Cassidy will not be eligible for parole until they have served at least half of their sentences.
"This child did not deserve to go through this horrific abuse, but because of these sentences, the defendants can never hurt him or any other child ever again," said Brittany Hansford, the assistant district attorney with the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office Special Victims Division.