A public defender has asked a court to evaluate whether Elizabeth Siders is competent to stand trial in a Vinton County, Ohio, child-endangerment case that began after authorities found 16 children living in a Hamden rental home.

Attorney Thomas Stolly filed the motion in Vinton County Common Pleas Court, saying meetings with Siders led him to believe she may have significant mental-health problems that could keep her from assisting in her own defense. If she is found competent, the defense also asked for an evaluation of whether she was legally insane at the time of the alleged offenses.

Judge Laina Fetherolf Rogers granted competency and sanity evaluations. A state-designated forensic center is to examine Siders. Similar evaluations were ordered for the other three defendants: her husband, Gary Siders Jr., and the children’s paternal grandparents, Gary Siders Sr. and Christina Siders.

The four adults were arrested after a June 30 search of an Ohmer Street home in Hamden, about 80 miles south of Columbus. Investigators said they found 16 children and teens in filthy conditions, including a room contaminated with human waste. Some of the children were hospitalized. Officials said the children had not been attending school and that some showed signs of medical neglect. Each adult faces 16 counts of felony child endangerment and has pleaded not guilty.

Siders has appeared in court in an orange jail uniform, at times holding her stomach, which fueled public speculation about her health. Competency and insanity are separate legal questions. Competency asks whether a defendant can understand the charges and help with a defense now. An insanity evaluation looks at mental state at the time of the alleged crimes. A finding of incompetence would not dismiss the case; it can lead to treatment aimed at restoring competency.

Source: Ohio news reports, August 2026.