Wake County parents accused of keeping child in dog cage face additional charges
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Rachelleigh Galasso and Lacy Hocutt Jr. were arrested last month and now face new charges.
- New filings allege Galasso aided and abetted Hocutt in raping one of their children.
- Hocutt is accused of raping a child for several years and taking nude photos of a child.
A Wake County couple accused of abusing and neglecting their children, including allegedly keeping one of the children in a dog cage, were arrested Thursday on additional charges.
Rachelleigh Galasso, 33, and Lacy Hocutt Jr., 34, were initially arrested last month on more than a dozen charges combined, The News & Observer previously reported.
Galasso is accused of medically neglecting and underfeeding their children, including allegedly keeping one child in a dog cage covered in feces, while Hocutt is accused of sexually abusing one of the children.
New charges filed Thursday by the Wake County Sheriff’s Office allege Galasso “aided and abetted” Hocutt in raping one of the children on at least two occasions.
The Sheriff’s Office also filed seven additional charges against Hocutt, accusing him of raping one of the children several times over at least two years and taking nude photographs of another child in the shower.
Court documents don’t specify how Galasso allegedly helped Hocutt in the assaults. Galasso’s defense attorney filed a bond motion last month describing the pair as former partners and Hocutt as a prolific abuser, The N&O previously reported.
“[Galasso] describes a long history of being sexually assaulted, beaten, strangled, and held at gunpoint by Hocutt,” the motion states. “[Galasso] has been deprived for years of the ability to leave the house or use a cell phone.”
Galasso and Hocutt were arrested at the Wake County Detention Center on Hammond Road about 9:15 p.m. Thursday, arrest records show. They remained in jail without bail as of Friday morning, and both have been forbidden from having any contact with the victims. Galasso was also ordered not to have any contact with Hocutt, according to court documents.
