Zanesville Mom Sentenced To Prison Time

ZANESVILLE, Ohio-Priscilla Meachem appeared in Muskingum County Common Pleas Court in relation to child abuse she inflicted on her children. Her boyfriend, Elijah Waltz, was sentenced last month on related charges.

Priscilla Meachem was convicted on six counts, two each of felonious assault, kidnapping and child endangering. Meachem was sentenced to 54 years in contrast to her boyfriend’s prior sentencing of 70 years. 

“The difference in the two cases have to do with the degree of responsibility for actions involving all of the abuse. There were certain situations that he was more involved in than she was. We also took into consideration the fact that he did abuse her on some levels and the fact that intellectually she did have some limitations that we wanted to take into consideration.”, prosecutor Ron welch told reporters.

Investigators and prosecutors called the case one of the worst they’d worked in their careers. It involved starvation, torture and abuse. They felt that justice was served as best it could be. 

“There’s never really an appropriate sentence that’s at our disposal for cases like this. To say that justice has been served, where you have two children that have been abused over such a long period of time, that’s a difficult thing to say. I think that we have served justice the best way that we can given the tools that we’re provided.”, Welch continued.

Both perpetrators face no chance for parole and the children involved have been placed in protective foster custody.