SOUTH BEND – 11 months ago, 10-year-old Tramelle Sturgis was found beaten to death by his father, Terry Sturgis.
Terry Sturgis is serving life in prison for murdering his son and abusing his two of his other kids.
The abuse happened inside Dellia Castile's home in South Bend where the family lived together. Castile is the grandmother of those children.
She's accused of not reporting that abuse and is on trial this week for 3 felony counts of neglect.
WSBT's Colleen Ferreira was in court on Thursday for opening statements and the first round of testimony. It was an emotional day for all involved.
A powerful and emotional day in the courtroom from the start. Some on the jury were seen crying. At some times, they looked shocked, stunned, almost like they had seen a ghost.
That reaction stemmed from the prosecutor’s opening argument that this abuse against the children was utterly preventable, specifically mentioning two instances February 2010 and Spring 2011 when the Department of Child Services and police were called to her home and Castile said "no abuse was taking place there". The only time she called police was the night Tramelle wasn't breathing after he was found beaten by his father, then later on died.
Defense says: Castile and Sturgis maintained separate lives. Sturgis lived in the basement of her home with his kids. He had his own rules for disciplining his children.
Defense says Castile tried to stop the abuse.
