Levittown couple sentenced for neglecting children

Levittown, Pa. (WTXF) - Authorities say a Levittown couple who took their severely neglected young children on shoplifting and heroin-buying excursions - but never to school or the dentist - were sentenced to serve three to seven years each in state prison.

According to authorities, William Medl and Kimberly Block, both 44, pleaded guilty Tuesday to endangering the welfare of children and several theft and drug-related charges. In addition to the prison time, the judge gave each a consecutive five years of probation.

By the time Bristol Township police and Bucks County social workers intervened last December, the three children were filthy, diseased and hungry, according to investigators.

Authorities say two girls, ages 8 and 7 at the time, did not know their last names or their ABCs, had never attended school, had rotted teeth and were infested with lice.

Their 2-year-old brother did not know his first name, communicated only with gestures, and smelled of spoiled milk, cigarettes and a diaper saturated with urine and feces, court records said.

The toddler, like his sisters, was covered with lice; all three had to have their heads shaved, according to investigators.

The children are now in foster care. The DA's Office said between the three of them, they have had 31 teeth extracted under anesthesia because of severe decay.

According to court records, the girls described driving to Philadelphia, where Medl left them alone in the car to purchase "adult medicine." They told of watching their parents snorting or injecting the powder, and of moving it out of their little brother's reach, knowing it was poison.