Dustin Walker, Muskogee County, Oklahoma man id as biological father of 11 year old stepdaughter’s newborn child born at home. As both he and child’s biological mother, Cherie Walker now face upgraded charged following the results of DNA tests.
A Muskogee, Oklahoma man who previously claimed along with his wife that they were unaware that their 11 year old daughter was pregnant after the girl giving a recent home birth has had charges against him upgraded after DNA tests have definitively concluded that he is the father of the newborn child.
Dustin Walker, 34, and Cherie Walker, 33, the 11 year old’s biological mother, were arrested last week and originally charged with one count of felony child neglect each after the child gave birth to a full-term baby at home on Aug. 16, court records show. The parents initially claimed they did not know the child was pregnant, and the child had not been to the doctor in over a year.
DNA tests confirm paternity of 11 year old girl’s newborn
The charges against the couple were amended on Monday after DNA test results revealed that the stepfather was a 99.9% DNA match for the baby’s father, according to the test shared with NBC News by the Muskogee County District Attorney’s Office.
Dustin Walker is accused of sexually abusing the child, who was 11 years old at the time, on or between Jan. 1 to Aug. 16, resulting in her giving birth to his child. The child’s mother, Cherie Walker, was charged with enabling child sexual abuse, News9 reported.
‘This is one of the most if not the most serious child sexual abuse and neglect cases I have ever prosecuted,’ Muskogee County Assistant District Attorney Janet Hutson said in a statement.
‘This child is traumatized,’ Hutson told News On 6. ‘She’s been through a horrific ordeal. Not only has somebody gotten her pregnant, but she gave birth at home without medical assistance, and this will be her life for the rest of her life.’
11 year old child failed by the system
The couple were also charged with six counts of felony child neglect, including for failing to provide the 11-year-old adequate medical care and supervision when she gave birth at home, per court documents. The remaining five counts of child neglect are for allegedly neglecting the five children that they share, aged 2, 4, 6, 7 and 9, on or between Jan. 1 and Aug. 16. The children were “living in deplorable conditions,” according to the documents.
The children were removed from the home on Tuesday.
‘The victims were found to be living in dog feces and had no clothing on,’ court documents state.
Cheryl Adkins who lives next to the house where the 11-year-old lived said she made calls to authorities, only to say, ‘nothing was done to address the children’s living circumstances’. It remained unclear if Child Protection Services had been notified and actively pursuing the child neglect.
Bond was set for the couple at $100,000 each, per court records. A sounding docket court hearing is scheduled for Sept. 3.
‘Each of the charges against both defendants are punishable by up to life,’ Hutson said.
