Bucks County parents of starving newborns are charged with felonies

🚼Twins were born 32 weeks premature in October

🚼Their parents missed four doctors appointments

🚼They gained weight "significantly" after 3 days in a hospital

CROYDON, Pa. — A couple was charged with child endangerment after failing to bring their pre-mature newborn twins to a doctor, according to Bucks County Jennifer Schorn.

Courtney Soyka, 32, and Marcus Maddela, 45, of Croydon are parents of twins born at 32 weeks on Oct. 7 until they were healthy enough to be sent home. After missing four appointments to check the twins' weight they were brought to a hospital on Dec. 11 and appeared extremely underweight for their age, Schorn said.

One of the infants weighed 4.16 pounds at birth and weighed only 5.78 pounds when they returned to the hospital. The other twin weighed 3.74 pounds at birth and 5.04 pounds when they returned in December. After being taken to St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, the infants improved significantly, officials said.

Not getting enough food at home

A St. Christopher’s doctor said that their weight was consistent with insufficient caloric intake at home.

The twins' doctor said that the insufficient weight gain could have been addressed sooner if the twins had been taken to their follow-up appointments with their pediatrician as scheduled.

Soyka and Maddela were charged with were charged with felony child endangerment. They are being held on $500,000 bail.

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