Probation for Coopersburg Couple found with Toddler, Heroin

In a Lehigh County courtroom surrounded by their attorneys, Christopher Cespuglio and Shelton Lynn Marsillett were sentenced last week to four years probation for one count of endangering the welfare of children and one count of possession of a controlled substance. The charges stem from a where a constable went to serve the couple for a traffic violation and found the home riddled with uncapped needles, heroin packets, human feces and, in a disturbing find for officials entering the home, a toddler. 

Police said in the criminal complaint and in court that the home's conditions were the "worst they've ever seen."

According to the criminal complaint, police arrived at the home to find "hundreds of uncapped syringes laying through the entire residence, on the floor, on table tops, and end tables. Some contained blood, and some contained a clear liquid."

Officers also smelled urine in the residence and found approximately 20-30 plastic containers of human urine throughout the residence.

Officers entered the sleeping area and found human feces smeared on the crib and 20-30 dirty diapers piled around the room.

In the kitchen, officers found approximately 10 full garbage bags filled with garbage and moldy food with insects crawling and flying around. Moldy food was also found throughout the home.

"It's a miracle that that little girl is alive," said Judge Lawrence Brenner as Deputy District Attorney Michael Edwards scrolled through picture after picture of the "squalor" in court. The toddler now lives with family members.

Cespugilo agreed. "[The photos are] disgusting, your honor."

The couple are in rehab, and defense attorneys as well as counselors working with the couple feel that family reunification is possible. "It's not going to be easy, but there's one thing worth it, and that's your daughter," said Brenner.

"[Our daughter] loves us unconditionally and I am going to have to live with what we put her through for the rest of my life," said Marsillett.