Who are Boyd and Stephanie Householder? Couple charged for 'horrific sexual and physical abuse' of 16 students
HUMANSVILLE, MISSOURI: Boyd and Stephanie Householder, who owned and managed the 'Circle of Hope' Christian reform school for girls in Humansville, Missouri, have been charged with a shocking 102 counts of horrific sexual, mental and physical abuse of as many as 16 students. The survivors came forward over the course of the past few months, after the couple's daughter Amanda Householder, who attended the same school, spoke out on TikTok about the alleged abuse she and her peers underwent.
Sixteen former residents of the school, have alleged that the founder couple often engaged in horrific activities like restraining them with handcuffs, whipping with belts, taping their mouths shut, and striking or punching them for trivial issues like singing or drinking from a spring, reports DailyMail.
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While 71-year-old Boyd Householder was charged with 22 counts of sexual contact, including sex with a minor. In total, he faces 79 felony and misdemeanor charges while his wife, 55-year-old Stephanie, is charged with 22 counts of abuse and neglect of a child. There are currently being held at Vernon County Jail. The school had closed down in August 2020 after investigators rescued and removed over two dozen girls.
The details of their charges were reportedly confirmed by the Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt's office, who stated "There are no words that I can say here today to describe the mixture of great sadness, horror, disgust and sympathy that I feel about these reports of cruel and almost unbelievable abuse and neglect. We intend to do everything in the power of this office to get justice for these victims."
How did Boyd and Stephanie Householder abuse the students?
Reportedly, Boyd used to sexually and physically abuse the survivors on multiple occasions. He had told at least seven girls what was the 'proper way' to commit suicide, by cutting their wrists upwards. In one instance, he forced a girl student to drink 220 ounces of water and run a mile. When she vomited, she was ordered by Boyd to run another mile.
Boyd Householder is also accused of 'repeated statutory sodomy, statutory rape, and sexual contact with a student, detailing multiple incidents where Boyd Householder had oral and sexual intercourse with a victim under the age of 17, as well as several incidents where Boyd Householder placed his finger(s) in the victim’s vagina,' stated AG Schmitt's office in an officially released statement.
Other survivors have alleged that on several occasions, Boyd pushed his knee onto their backs and applied pressure on certain 'pressure points', while handcuffing or restraining their hands and feet. They were also forced to hold the 'push-up' position. At other times, Boyd even slammed their heads or bodies against the wall and then slapped or hit them with hands and belts. He even shoved a survivor's face into horse manure and poured hot sauce down another girl's throat.
The charges against Stephanie mostly comprise instances of restraining the students and allowing her husband to keep in contact with several girls after physically assaulting them.
What does the couple say about the allegations?
Forensic evidence was used to corroborate the alleged instances of abuse against the 16 girls. But both the Householders have pleaded not guilty to the allegations.
"'They're angry and they're bitter, and they want to blame somebody. They feel like they're victims, and they just want to take their anger out on somebody," Stephanie Householder reportedly remarked about the survivors who came forward.
After the allegations first surfaced last year, the Householders vehemently denied the complaints. Instead, they blamed and shamed the survivors for falsehood. "The girls that are making these comments and stuff, they’ve gone nowhere in life. The girls that are praising us have gone to college, have a career in the military, have a career in office buildings as secretaries and so forth," Boyd reportedly told Kansas City. They also counter-alleged that they were attacked by some of the girls who were complaining against them.
The couple had kicked out their own daughter Amanda at the age of 17, who later started speaking out about the abuse and urged other survivors to come forward with their allegations against her parents. While commenting about their daughter, Boyd remarked with contempt, "She’s a Satan worshiper. She’s addicted to drugs."