“HE DOESN’T FULLY UNDERSTAND” — GRANDFATHER IN OHIO “HOUSE OF HORRORS” CASE DECLARED INCOMPETENT TO STAND TRIAL

Gary Siders Sr., 73, was facing 16 child-endangerment charges after authorities removed 16 children from a rural Ohio home. Now, a judge has ruled that he is mentally incompetent to stand trial.

A major legal development has emerged in the disturbing Ohio case involving 16 children removed from a rural home earlier this year.

Gary Siders Sr., 73, has been declared mentally incompetent to stand trial after a judge accepted the findings of a mental-health evaluation, according to PEOPLE and The Associated Press.

The evaluation found that Siders’ condition is “not restorable,” his attorney Dorian Baum said after the hearing.

“He doesn’t fully understand or appreciate what’s going on,” Baum told reporters.

Siders is facing 16 child-endangerment charges connected to the June 30 rescue of the children from a home in Hamden, Ohio.

The competency ruling does not determine whether he committed the alleged offenses. Instead, it addresses whether he is mentally capable of understanding the proceedings and assisting in his defense.

16 CHILDREN FOUND INSIDE THE OHIO HOME

The case began on June 30, when authorities went to the rural property in Hamden and discovered 16 children ranging in age from 18 months to 18 years.

Investigators described the conditions inside the home as extremely poor.

According to authorities, the children were mostly confined to a small room and were not enrolled in school.

Some reportedly had extremely limited communication abilities, while others required medical attention.

Seven children were taken to hospitals following the initial rescue, with some requiring urgent treatment. Two were reportedly airlifted to trauma centers because of the severity of their conditions.

Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson previously described the conditions as “deplorable.”

Authorities also said some of the children appeared severely socially isolated and had difficulty communicating.

FOUR ADULTS WERE ARRESTED

Siders Sr. was one of four adults arrested following the discovery.

The others were:

• Gary Siders Jr., 36, the children’s father
• Elizabeth Siders, 33, the children’s mother
• Christina Siders, 67, the children’s paternal grandmother

All four initially pleaded not guilty to child-endangerment allegations.

Siders Sr. later sought a mental competency evaluation.

His attorney requested the evaluation in July, and a judge ordered it the following day. The examination was conducted on September 9, according to court records cited by PEOPLE.

“NOT RESTORABLE”

Siders appeared in court in a wheelchair when the competency ruling was announced.

After reviewing the mental-health evaluation, the judge accepted the conclusion that Siders was incompetent to stand trial.

His attorney said the finding was not unexpected because his client’s mental health had been deteriorating for years.

Baum also said Siders’ condition was considered not restorable, meaning there was not an expectation that treatment would return him to a state in which he could competently participate in a criminal trial.

Siders had also previously been released from custody for medical reasons.

THE CHILDREN ARE NOW IN STATE CUSTODY

Following their removal from the home, the 16 children were placed in the custody of Vinton County.

Officials said the children would require extensive support after what authorities described as a traumatic upbringing.

They are receiving therapeutic foster care, while the state of Ohio has provided $1 million in emergency funding to help the county meet their needs.

The children’s ages range from an infant to an 18-year-old, making the case unusual not only because of the number of children involved but also because investigators say they had lived largely isolated from the outside world.

HOW DID NO ONE KNOW?

Perhaps one of the biggest questions surrounding the case is how the situation remained largely hidden for so long.

The family reportedly moved around southern Ohio over a period of roughly two decades.

Investigators said the children were not enrolled in school, and neighbors told The Associated Press they had rarely — if ever — seen children at the property.

The rural location and the family’s isolation appear to have played a significant role in keeping the children’s circumstances out of public view.

Authorities have also been reviewing whether the family had previously come to the attention of child-welfare agencies.

A LEGAL CASE WITH NO SIMPLE ANSWER

The competency ruling creates another complicated chapter in a case that has already raised difficult questions about child welfare, isolation and accountability.

For Siders Sr., the immediate issue is no longer simply whether he will face a trial.

The court must first determine how the criminal case can proceed given the finding that he is not mentally competent to participate in it.

Meanwhile, the other defendants remain subject to their own legal proceedings.

And for the 16 children, the aftermath is only beginning.

They have been removed from the environment where authorities found them, but officials say their recovery will require long-term care and support.

THE QUESTIONS LEFT BEHIND

How could 16 children remain outside the education system for years?

Why did neighbors rarely see them?

Were there earlier opportunities for someone to intervene?

And how did the family remain largely invisible despite living in a community where people knew the property existed?

Those questions remain at the heart of the wider investigation.

For now, one thing is clear: the courtroom story surrounding Gary Siders Sr. has changed dramatically.

The 73-year-old will not proceed to trial in the ordinary way unless his legal status changes.

But the larger Ohio case — involving 16 children, three other charged adults and a deeply troubling history of isolation — is far from over.

Sixteen children were finally brought out of the home. Now, authorities and the courts must determine what happened, who was responsible, and how the children can begin rebuilding their lives.