He Saw A Girl's Pale, Thin Face In The Window Next Door But When The Police Show Up, They Are Shocked

#1 Police Officer Will Never Forget The Girl In The Window

Policeman Mark Holste from Florida, USA will never forgot the call he received on July 13th, 2005. A man reported seeing a mysterious, pale little girl in the window of his neighbor's house.

#2 The House Was Believed To Have Only Three Occupants

The dilapidated house had been lived in for the past three years, but there was no sign of children living there - not in the yard or anywhere else. Everyone knew a woman lived in the house with her boyfriend and two adult sons. But they had never seen a child there, had never noticed anyone playing in the overgrown yard.

The girl looked young, 5 or 6, and thin. Too thin. Her cheeks seemed sunken; her eyes were lost.

The child stared into the square of sunlight, then slipped away.

#3 A Worried Neighbor Called Investigators

The neighbor was worried that it may be a case of child abuse, so the officer immediately set out to investigate. When he and his partner arrived at the home the day they got the papers from the Department of Child Services, an investigator for the Florida Department of Children and Families was already at the scene. She was sobbing in her car.

"Unbelievable," she told Holste. "The worst I've ever seen."

#4 It Was The Worst Living Conditions They Had Ever Seen

The police officers walked through the front door, into a cramped living room. Nothing could've prepared him for what he found inside the house: animal waste all over the floor, old chewed-up food, trash, spiderwebs, and reportedly thousands of cockroaches.

"I've been in rooms with bodies rotting there for a week and it never stunk that bad," Holste said later. "There's just no way to describe it. Urine and feces dog, cat and human excrement smeared on the walls, mashed into the carpet. Everything dank and rotting."

#5 They Discovered A Small Girl Was Living Inside The House

But worst of all, said Holste, was the child he found inside: A 6-year-old little girl, half starved and naked except for a dirty diaper, was sitting surrounded by trash.

"When I entered the room, her eyes widened. She opened her mouth and then crawled sideways, like a crab, to the corner, pulled her knees to her chin, and wrapped her arms around them. Then she started making grunting noises," reported the shaken policeman.

#6 The Mother Told The Officers She Had A Daughter But She Did Not Show Them To Her Room

While Holste looked around, a stout woman in a faded housecoat demanded to know what was going on. Yes, she lived there. Yes, those were her two sons in the living room. Her daughter? Well, yes, she had a daughter . . .

The detective strode past her, down a narrow hall. He turned the handle on a door, which opened into a space the size of a walk-in closet. He squinted in the dark.

At his feet, something stirred. First he saw the girl's eyes: dark and wide, unfocused, unblinking. She wasn't looking at him so much as through him.

She lay on a torn, moldy mattress on the floor. She was curled on her side, long legs tucked into her emaciated chest. Her ribs and collarbone jutted out; one skinny arm was slung over her face; her black hair was matted, crawling with lice. Insect bites, rashes and sores pocked her skin. Though she looked old enough to be in school, she was naked except for a swollen diaper.

#7 The Girl Was Rushed To The Hospital

The little girl is named Danielle. She was immediately taken to the hospital in a miserable state. Her speech and mannerisms were similar to those of a 6-month-old though she was 7. She had received no love and no compassion from her mother. She weighed 46 pounds. She was malnourished and anemic. In the pediatric intensive care unit they tried to feed the girl, but she couldn't chew or swallow solid food. So they put her on an IV and let her drink from a bottle.

Danielle's mother was sent to jail for 26 hours, was given 2 years of house arrest, and 3 years probation. Danielle was immediately taken away from her.

#8 Danielle Got Adopted By A Loving Family

Danielle, the little girl who had known loneliness her entire life, finally struck a bit of luck. Instead of being sent to an orphanage, a loving couple, Diane and Bernie Lierows, adopted her. They already had four sons, but always wanted a little girl. When they saw Danielle, they knew immediately that they wanted to take care of her and that she was meant to be a member of their family.

#9 She Suffers From Severe Psychological Problems

Danielle was adopted a few days before her 8th birthday. But life wasn't easy for Danielle or her new family, seeing as she was, and still is, dealing with deep psychological wounds from her past. Danielle had probably missed the chance to learn speech, but maybe she could come to understand language, to communicate in other ways.

Still, doctors had only the most modest ambitions for her.

#10 She Has Fits Daily And Can't Stop Eating

"She has 7 or 8 fits every day," said Bernie, her new dad. "And she's very concerned with food. She often eats until she has to throw up. She eats like she won't get another bite."

That's the reason that their refrigerator is locked with a chain. Otherwise, Danielle empties the whole thing. Of course, the reason for this is her terrible past - her mother almost let her starve.

#11 A Two Year Old In A 15 Year Olds Body

But despite her awful childhood, Danielle is doing better in her new home. She is now 15 years old, enjoys going to school, and has a close relationship with her adoptive father. She has become a daddy's girl after the neglect of her biological mother. He says, "She's a 2-year-old in the body of a 15-year-old girl."

#12 She Is Making Small Steps To Adulthood

Every day she makes small steps in the direction of adulthood. Her parents hope that one day she will be independent, and maybe even marry. "Having Dani in our lives is like a roller coaster. One that we don't want to get off of," said her parents.

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