GASTONIA, N.C. (AP) -- A Gastonia couple has been charged with locking a teen in a bedroom without food and water.
Police say the 14-year-old was left in the room for days without food and water or access to a bathroom.
Forty-five-year-old Joy Evonne Skipper and 41-year-old Rufus Dickson Sr. are charged with child abuse inflicting serious injury. They also are charged with contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile.
Authorities say the victim was dehydrated and he tried to escape to beg for food from neighbors.
It was not clear if Skipper and Dickson have attorneys.