James And Crystal Driggers Arrested After Banishing Their Daughter To The Woods For Eating A Pop Tart

by Olivia Truffaut-WongJuly 8, 2015, 6:50 pmNews >

James and Crystal Driggers were arrested after making their daughter live in the woods as punishment for eating a Pop-Tart.

James And Crystal Driggers Forced 14-Yr-Old Daughter To Live In Woods

James Driggers, 33, and Crystal Driggers, 36, allegedly forced their 14-year-old daughter to live in a tent in the woods for two days and refused to let her into their South Carolina home. The Driggers intended on leaving their daughter in the woods for an entire week, armed only with a tent, one roll of toilet paper, a flashlight, a whistle and a watch.

The couple also allegedly set up meeting times when their daughter was allowed to meet “someone” at a fence on the family’s property at a specific time to receive food, but if she missed the rendez-vous they would not allow her to return to ask for food. According to police, the girl was delivered one open can of Spaghetti-Os with a plastic spoon during one such visit.

Police were called after the girl’s grandmother found out she had been forced to camp out in the woods during a severe thunderstorm on Thursday, July 3. The grandmother reportedly took the girl to her nearby home and called authorities, who returned her to her parents later that night. Upon her return, the girl was promptly sent back to her camp ground, over a quarter-mile from the home, where police found her the following day.

According to authorities, the Driggers, who are also parents to five other children, forbid the teenager to enter the home from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day before her exile to the woods. “She couldn’t return for any reason. Not to get a drink, not to use the bathroom, nothing,” said Police spokesman Braden Bunch.

The girl told investigators that she had been banished form the home to do yard work during those hours, despite the intense heat wave. “She would have to use the restroom outside and retrieve water from a water hose. [She] stated that if she got really hungry, she would climb into the garage window and get food from the other refrigerator,” an investigator wrote in the official Police report.

The police report suggests James and Crystal Driggers wanted to punish their daughter for eating a Pop-Tart by showing her “how it would be to be homeless.” When confronted by the police, Driggers reportedly called his 14-year-old a “problem child”

Both James and Crystal Driggers were arrested and charged with one count of unlawful neglect of a child. As authorities continue their investigation into the parents, they could face further charges. The couple was released on Monday after a bond hearing, while their daughter was placed in Child Protective Services and their other five children were put in the custody of relatives.

Article by Olivia Truffaut-Wong

Olivia Truffaut-Wong was born and raised in Berkeley, California, where she developed her love of all things entertainment. After moving to New York City to earn her degree in Film Studies, she stayed on the East Coast to follow her passion and become an entertainment writer. She lives on a diet of television, movies and food.