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Tara and James Dampier booking photos
MUNCIE, Ind. — Animal feces in nearly every room. A dog with hair so matted that it was hard to tell which end was the tail and which was the head. Trash piling up on the kitchen floor.
That’s how investigators described conditions inside a Muncie home where a brother and sister were arrested for preliminary charges of child and animal neglect.
Charging documents indicate police arrived at the home of Tara Dampier, 40, and her brother James Dampier, 41, on Feb. 28.
According to court documents, responding officers were met with an “extremely foul odor” as they entered the home. “The odor was consistent with the odor of animal feces, urine, and trash,” described a Muncie police in the probable cause affidavit.
“I could see animal feces in almost every room I entered on the floor, and urine caked and dried on the floor.”
-Muncie police officer in probable cause affidavit
The kitchen was so full of cluttered trash that police said there was no visible place where food could be safely prepared for consumption.
A juvenile female was found in the home. When asked why she was not at school, Tara Dampier reportedly said it was because the girl was homeschooled.
Two dogs were also located inside the home. One was severely emaciated and had “open sores on its body that were in need of treatment,” read the affidavit. The other dog was described as having severely matted fur and did not stir when an officer had to step over the animal to get into a room.
Investigators found a controlled substance (an oxycodone tablet) during the search.
James and Tara Dampier were both arrested on preliminary charges of child and animal neglect. Tara Dampier faces an additional charge of possession of a controlled substance.
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