Children in Cages: Red Wing Couple Sentenced for Child Torture

Red Wing, MN (KROC-AM News)- A man and woman from Red Wing have been sentenced for a child torture case. 

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Authorities were first notified of a concern for the children's welfare in August of 2022. 

A subsequent visit to the home by the Red Wing Police Department led to the discovery of three of the four children being held in make-shift cages, the criminal complaint says. 

Upon further investigation, law enforcement learned the children, ages 3, 5, 7 and 9 at the time, had been held in cages for periods of 13-14 hours and had been physically struck by their parents, the charges say. 

Red Wing, MN Couple Sentenced For Beating & Caging Children

The mother told investigators the children were caged for safety. The parents, identified as 40-year-old Christina Ann Cotton and 42-year-old Benjamin Taylor Cotton, were each charged with 16 counts of child abuse-related charges. 

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In September Christina and Ben each entered plea deals that dismissed 10 of the 11 charges each filed against them. Christina pleaded guilty to one count of child torture, while Ben admitted to a child torture-liability for crimes of another charge. 

The man and woman from Red Wing were each sentenced to four years in prison during their sentencing hearings in Goodhue County Court on Friday. 

Ben is ordered to serve his time at the state correctional facility in St. Cloud while Christina will serve her sentence at the state prison in Shakopee.

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