Parents starved their ballerina daughter and forbade her to grow up (6 photos)

The Perth, Australia, couple kept their daughter on a strict diet and even faked her birth certificate to make her underweight for her age. The 17-year-old ballerina was in serious condition and was at risk of cardiac arrest. She pleaded with the judge to have mercy, but her parents were sent to prison.





"This is not a case about a malnourished ballerina," Judge Linda Black said as she sentenced the father to six and a half years in prison and the mother to five. "You have been shielding your daughter from the outside world, preventing her from developing as she could have. You kept her a child for much longer than was necessary."

The girl was home-schooled and had no contact with the outside world except for ballet lessons. Her parents only allowed her to watch cartoons intended for younger children, such as Teletubbies and Thomas & Friends.



During the trial, the father claimed that his daughter followed a vegan diet, but still ate three meals a day and snacks.

"My client did not starve the child... He never denied her food," his lawyer, Oliver Paxman, told CNN. "He loved and spoiled his daughter. She could eat as much as she wanted. In this case, we are talking about malnutrition as a result of a vegan diet."





A judge did not believe a couple who repeatedly lied about their daughter's age in an attempt to hide the fact that she was severely malnourished.

"It seemed like everyone who had contact with the girl knew that she was severely malnourished, except for the two people who professed their love for her. I just can't accept that you didn't see that. I can't believe you didn't notice that," Black said.

The ballerina was hospitalized with a body mass index of 12.5, well below the healthy range of 18 to 25.



"According to the doctor, she was emaciated, with limited body fat. She was pale. There were no signs of puberty. Her hair was brittle and thin, her skin was peeling. Her heart rate was elevated. An EKG was required, and you both refused," the judge added.

When the parents refused to allow their daughter to be tube-fed, the state stepped in.

"It's not unusual for parents to want to take care of their children and not want them to grow up too quickly. There's nothing strange about that," Black said during her sentencing. "But it's not right for a parent to interfere with their child's natural process of growing up. You thought you could give her what she wanted, but you failed to give her what she really needed."



The tortured ballerina spoke out in defense of her parents, writing to the judge: "I am completely dependent on my parents. All my living expenses are paid for by my parents, including clothing, food, money as needed. My college expenses are paid for by my parents. I love my parents very much. They are the most important people in my life. If they go to prison, I don't know how I'm going to live."



While the father admitted to falsifying the birth certificate, the parents denied all other charges.

Black saw no reason to let them go free: "You've shown no remorse. You've taken no responsibility."