An Indiana man has been convicted of child neglect after his six-month-old son nearly died from over 50 rat bites in their vermin-infested home, according to court records. David Schonabaum, 32, was found guilty of three counts of neglect, a case that the local prosecutor called “shocking.”
Vanderburgh County Prosecutor Diana Moers revealed that the infant is now permanently disfigured due to the severe injuries he sustained while lying in his bassinet. The incident occurred on September 13, 2023, when emergency services were called to the home in Evansville, where they found the child in a pool of blood with extensive bite wounds, including exposed bone on one hand.
“When paramedics and police arrived, the infant was laying in his crib in a pool of blood, and the bites were so bad on his body — including his face, mouth, and extremities — that they left bone showing on one hand,” Moers said, per the Evansville Courier & Press.
The prosecution argued that Schonabaum had a responsibility to provide a safe environment for his children but instead allowed the home’s conditions to deteriorate. The Department of Child Services (DCS) had reportedly been warning Schonabaum for two years about the need to improve the home, and a pest control expert had provided him with rat traps, which were never used.
Schonabaum, his wife, Angel, 29, and his sister, Delaina Thurman, were arrested following the incident. Thurman, who has two children of her own, reached a plea deal and was sentenced to two years of probation earlier this year.
The Evansville Police Department reported that Schonabaum called for help after waking up to find his baby “covered in blood,” with fingers appearing to be “chewed off.” Medical professionals later found more than 50 rat bites across the infant’s body, including severe damage to his fingers, which required amputation.
The baby was airlifted to a specialized hospital in Indianapolis due to the severity of his injuries, which doctors described as a “near-fatal event.” First responders also found the room where the baby slept was filled with garbage and rat feces, with blood smeared on his bassinet and blanket.