Missouri Kidnap Victims Rebuild Lives

Four Months After Being Rescued, Teens Return To Studies, Undergo Counseling

(AP)  Four months after they were rescued, two boys who were allegedly kidnapped by a former pizzeria manager are trying to rebuild their lives as they undergo counseling and return to their studies.

Prosecutors are pressing a massive criminal case against Michael Devlin, who is charged with abducting the boys and holding them hostage at his apartment in suburban St. Louis.

Ben Ownby, 13, was missing for four days. Shawn Hornbeck, now 15, was missing for four years after vanishing in 2002.

Ben has largely returned to the life he knew before he was abducted Jan. 8. He was eager to go back to school, and his parents even forced him to slow down and stay home a few days. His principal said he has settled into class as if he had never left.

Ben has also played in Little League games, participated in Boy Scout activities and gone camping with his father.

“You really do appreciate some of those times now that you might have taken for granted before,” said his father, Don Ownby.

Both Shawn and Ben's parents are keeping the boys out of the media spotlight, so neither could be interviewed. Both teens are still in counseling to help them cope with their ordeal, according to friends and family.

It is The Associated Press' policy not to identify most victims of sexual abuse, but the boys' stories have been widely publicized, and their names are now well-known.

Shawn has returned to a new home. The house from which he disappeared at the age of 11 has been demolished and replaced with a new residence, courtesy of a St. Louis homebuilder.

Shawn did not attend school for the years he was captive in Devlin's apartment. After his rescue, he underwent an educational assessment that showed he is highly intelligent although far behind his peers academically, said Scott Sherman, an attorney who represents the family.

Shawn is being tutored at home and has excelled at math, Sherman said. His parents have taken him to movies and restaurants, although he is recognized nearly everywhere he goes.

“They have had no incidents of anybody being anything but kind and supportive,” Sherman said.

Shawn's counseling is “pretty intense,” Sherman said. “He's got a lot to go through.”

Authorities say Devlin kidnapped Ben after he got off a school bus. A passerby spotted a truck speeding from the scene that led police to Devlin's apartment, where they also found Shawn.

Devlin, 41, has been jailed since his arrest. He is to be arraigned Monday in Washington County on charges that he kidnapped, sexually abused and then tried to kill Shawn.

He is also facing charges in Franklin County for kidnapping Ben, and faces 71 counts of forcible sodomy and kidnapping in St. Louis County, where he is accused of keeping the boys. Devlin faces federal charges of making child pornography and transporting Shawn across state lines.

Devlin's attorneys have received almost 2,000 pages of evidence from authorities. But defense attorney Ethan Corlija said it would be wrong to assume Devlin's case is a “slam dunk” for prosecutors.

Devlin “understands that there is a long road ahead of us,” Corlija said. “He's anxious to get his side across in this situation.”

[homespunlady]

It's good they're back and getting help. Whatever came of the possible connection to another boy that disappeared and has not been found? The real question is whether there had been others before he was caught.

[ecuadoriana]

You are so correct, toldyouso21! G that you have your 6th sense! Obviously you're a loving, protective & unselfish parent.

More prents should stop being so blind & selfish that they allow themselves to be distracted by their cellphones/TVs/friends/personal wants (like the ones who leave the kids in the car "for just a few minutes" while they run into the store/bar/motel/whatever).

Parents allow themselves to be blinded by their faith in the church (that's why it's called "blind faith", duh!), the whole "MY minister (or my coach/uncle/friend/whatever) would never do such a thing! MY priest is a good man. MY church would never tolerate...."

Parents allow their kids to go on a camping/fishing/whatever trip with the pastor because basically it's a free weekend for the parents. Don't have to pay a sitter- just let Johnny go off if the woods with a guy from the church "...because he'd never do something bad, he's a man of god..." Then mom can go the the spa for her facial, dad can hit the links...

BLIND & SELFISH! Why doesn't dad take Johnny on the fishing trip, or sports event? Why doesn't dad give up his golf/bowling/whatever game for a change & spend time with his own son?

Same goes for daughters. I know parents who let their kids go to every sleepover they're invited to. They figure let the hosts babysit the kids (for free!).

If it's not the TV babysitting kids, it's always somebody else. Parents need to grow up & do their job of being parents & stop putting themselves first.

[sweetgal_deb]

Men who hide behind the good Lord in order to gain access to defenseless children need a special place in hell.

When my brother was 8 years old he went away for 2 weeks to a camp run by a big Baptist church in the Washington, DC suburbs. While there he was roomed with the teenage son of the pastor of that huge church. This teen was a camp counselor who raped my brother everynight for 2 weeks & threatened to kill our mother of he told.

The day mom picked him up at camp he stayed quiet on that bus til he was sure they were far away from camp before confessing what he had been thru. Mom took him to a doctor & the case went to court. Many church goers came to testify in this teens defense! In the end the judge said he believed my brother, but to keep from ruining this teens life (he was going to become pastor) he would let him off, but that if he was ever in front of the courts again he would be put away.

My brother was never right after that & at the age of 67 he went into his shed & blew his brains out.

[toldyouso21]

What is the purpose of having so many churches in southwest Missouri and ALSO having THE HIGHEST rates of child abuse in the state?????
Posted by cantshutup at 09:25 AM : May 19, 2007

Besides the Catholic priest cases, America's dirty little secret is that churches are often a refuge for sexual deviants and perverts. From Sunday school teachers to choir directors they often have unsupervised access to kids and unlike other venues, they do NOT normally undergo background checks. You can usually spot them though...they are the yound or middle aged men that take an unprecedented and inordinate interest in "young people" specifically, a lot of them want the boys. I met such a guy just a few years ago. He came by ostensibly about "his church" but seemed extraordinarily interested in my son. WAnted to take him fishing, to church, to the youth group (which he was in charge of) seemed not to care that my son had a dad or anything else. He just felt my child would really enjoy the experience. After he went on and on for about a half hour, I looked him in the eye and I told him that I had a 6th sense about child molesters, that God had given me a "gift" to practically smell the type of man that was interested in sodomizing or sexually abusing kids...the man left my yard so fast--he left skid marks. I never saw him again. (But later, I heard he was involved in a child molestation case)

[ecuadoriana]

Corlija said, %u201CHe's [Devlon] anxious to get his side across in this situation.%u201D

How in the world can Devlin even imagine that he has a "side" to his story?! The past articles referred to his statement of defense: "I was lonely". I responded at the time, in these cbs forums, that many people get lonely- but they find hobbies, join organisations, make friends with people their own age & they certainly don't kidnap & r-pe them.

How can any one actually want to be his defense attorney? That fact that all the evidence is there, he was found with the kids, he's admitted it by saying he was lonely... There is no "shadow of doubt" in this case. Dispense with the fair trial BS & execute the piece of excrement immediately. What is the point of wasting time, money & resources to defend this worthless pud?

These 2 boys are amazingly strong. They would be, after much therapy, perfect candidates as spokespeople to speak to other children about crimes against children. The law lacks real punishment for child abusers, molesters & killers. The law needs to be changed. Perhaps these boys will be the ones to change the system.

[peaceforusa]

I agree that only instant death to these perverts will end the child rapes and murders. They can not be rehabilitated and that has been proven over and over again. If the punishment was an immediate death sentence than these perverts might think twice about the crime they are about to commit. As it stands, they get a slap on the wrist, bail, probation or parole, fined, and let out of lock up to once again make another child their victim. Our justice system needs to get its priorities straight. There is nothing more precious then our children/grandchildren and these creeps are allowed to walk the streets and perpetrate the most horrible crimes upon them. The only way to stop them is SWIFT and IMMEDIATE DEATH!

[cantshutup]

by the way, Southwest Missouri has the highest rates of child physical/s e x ual abuse in the state...*** is in the water??? I also wonder ***?, when you drive through this area, specifically SPRINGFIELD MISSOURI, there are churches everywhere...there are 11 full pages listing churches in our phone book...for a population of about 150,000 that's a lot of churches...Seems like with all the churches some of them should be reaching out to child victims and teaching adults how not to abuse them!!!! What is the purpose of having so many churches in southwest Missouri and ALSO having THE HIGHEST rates of child abuse in the state?????

[cantshutup]

Recently, in my city it was discovered that a tenured professor at a local university had R A P E D a 9 year old boy when he was in his 20's. There was a huge outcry and that professor resigned his position. People were upset that his known background did not prevent him from attaining such a prestigious position at a university. This professer/R A P I S T lives within 2-3 blocks of an elementary school. If justice had been done appropriately when this man had savagely r a p e d the 9 yr old child, a.k.a. A SWIFT, SURE DEATH BY EXECUTION, we would not have had this scum living or working in our community. I agree, any person who inflicts such a crime on a child should be put to death. Michael Hendrix of Missouri State University in Springfield Missouri, may your sick r a p i s t a s s never find peace!!!

[tmonta1]

Clew,

I think you misunderstand crgaillee, and perhaps Christianity. We were never meant to turn our backs let people harm our children or to 'sit around and wait' for God to decide to judge criminals. Sometimes His justice comes through man's system and it is apparent to all, sometimes not--but it always comes to every soul sooner or later.

Crgaillee was praying for healing for these boys, and calling out, in the pain we all feel including yourself, for the justice we all want. It will come one way or the other. PEACE.

[clew37]

I am very tired of people that will only sit around and pray for God's justice. If you would only realize that the justice that needs to be done to save our children is in our own hands, as it has been since mankind began, then maybe our children wouldn't be the easy targets for repeat offenders. Stop waiting for some "holy justice" in the sky and take RESPOSIBILITY for the actions of human beings. The children are screaming while you wait for God to do something. Unfortunately it seems they will continue to do so. *** us all for not helping them. But I guess as long as they all go to heaven tomorrow, its OK to die screaming today...