PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A defense lawyer says a New York City couple took their eight children from a foster-care program because some of them were being abused.
Norman Steiner tells The Associated Press that one boy was molested and siblings “suffered horrendous abuse” during two years in foster care.
He says the parents were justified in taking the children to keep them safe.
Authorities say 28-year-old Shanel Nadal fled with her seven sons and infant daughter during a supervised visit at a Queens foster-care agency on Sept. 19.
She and 34-year-old Nephra Payne were found with their children in their van in Harrisburg on Monday.
