Coral Springs couple faces upgraded child abuse charges in Broward case
Prosecutors upgraded charges against a Coral Springs fire rescue lieutenant and his wife, saying alleged abuse of seven children stretched for years before a school disclosure.
Prosecutors upgraded the case against a Coral Springs couple on Monday. Joel Christopher Kohnert and Jennifer Renee Kohnert now face aggravated child abuse charges after investigators uncovered a broader pattern of abuse involving several children in the home.
Joel Kohnert, 44, a Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue lieutenant, and Jennifer Kohnert, 45, were first arrested on April 1 on child abuse without great bodily harm charges. The new filing adds five counts, including one child-neglect charge involving the couple’s adopted daughter and four counts involving their biological children, who were between 3 and 12 years old during the period investigators believe the abuse occurred. Aggravated child abuse is a severe first-degree felony in Florida and carries a potential sentence of up to 30 years in prison if there is a conviction.
The case began after the adopted daughter told school staff and a school resource officer that she had been locked in a bedroom for years, with no way out and no access to a bathroom. She described being forced to urinate and defecate in the room, then clean it with clothing using vinegar and bleach before washing the clothes outside in a bucket. She also said she slept on an air mattress, was made to bathe outside in the backyard in a bathing suit, and lived with a sound machine set at high volume to muffle noises from inside the house.
Investigators believe the abuse had been going on for about three years, and the girl’s disclosure triggered a Florida Department of Children and Families response on Feb. 11. The children were moved from homeschooling into the public school system before law enforcement was first notified.
A judge kept each defendant’s bond at $100,000 and ordered no contact with the victim or with minors unless dependency court allows it. In bond court, the judge said the allegations were “not a religious issue,” rejecting the defense’s argument that the case was tied to the family’s beliefs. A neighbor called the couple “awesome parents.”
Joel Kohnert has been on administrative investigative leave without pay and was hired by Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue on Nov. 15, 2010. All of the children in the home are now in the custody of the Florida Department of Children and Families.
The case is scheduled for a hearing on Aug. 20, with a tentative trial date of Aug. 31.
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