Woman accused of holding stepson captive must wear GPS tracker, Connecticut judge rules
A woman accused of holding her stepson captive for 20 years was ordered to wear a GPS monitor as a condition of her bail, a Connecticut judge ruled Friday.
Kimberly Sullivan, 56, entered a not guilty plea at the hearing two weeks after Waterbury Police arrested her on charges of kidnapping her 32-year-old stepson, who was found emaciated during a fire at her home.
The judge ordered Sullivan to submit to GPS tracking while denying the prosecution's request to place her under house arrest.
"While we respect today's decision by the Court, we stand firmly behind the arguments we put forth. I urge everyone to remember what the Judge made clear on the record, that the allegations facing Ms. Sullivan are just that - allegations. We are confident that the facts of this case and the evidence to be presented, will make it crystal clear to a jury that Ms. Sullivan is not the monster that some in the public and the media portray her to be," said a statement by Sullivan's lawyer, Matt Caron.
Sullivan had previously appeared in court on Wednesday, but the judge did not allow to her enter a plea and gave her lawyers two days to respond to the motion to modify her bail.
She is charged with kidnapping, unlawful restraint, cruelty and reckless endangerment. Her next court date is April 22.
Stepson imprisoned, underfed for 20 years, investigators say
Sullivan's stepson allegedly started the fire on Feb. 17 in an attempt to draw first responders to the house where he claims he was being held captive.
"I wanted my freedom," the man said, according to police.
The man weighed just 69 pounds when first responders discovered him in a small room. He told investigators Sullivan had imprisoned in the room since he was approximately 11 years old.
He claimed his stepmom never took him to a doctor or dentist and gave him barely enough food to survive.
"He was, without exaggeration, akin to a survivor of Auschwitz's death camp," the prosecutor said.
Sullivan was in charge, the man told investigators, but his father, who died in 2024, and stepsisters knew about his treatment.
Waterbury Police and the Connecticut Department of Children and Families did welfare checks on the home 20 years ago, when he was first removed from school, but critics claim there were no follow-ups, which allowed the alleged abuse to unfold.
