Bucks County mom sentenced to up to 20 years in prison in one of 'worst' child neglect cases

Jo Ciavaglia, Bucks County Courier Times
·3 min read
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A Bucks County judge has sentenced a 48-year-old woman to up to 21 years in state prison for neglecting four of her six children who police found living with her and her husband in a filthy car parked at a Middletown train station.

The sentence that Judge Wallace Bateman imposed Tuesday on Christine Dunkowski is similar to the one he gave her 54-year-old estranged husband, Albert Dunkowski, earlier this year. He will serve nine to 21 years in state prison and she will serve a minimum of eight years, prosecutor Matt Lannetti said.

Bateman issued sentences ranging from a minimum of 2½ to three years up to seven years on each of the three felony counts against Christine Dunkowski to be run consecutively meaning she has to complete the minimum on each count before the next begins.

Judge Wallace Bateman issued sentences ranging from a minimum of 2½ to three years up to seven years on each of the three felony counts against Christine Dunkowski to be run consecutively meaning she has to complete the minimum on each count before the next begins.
Judge Wallace Bateman issued sentences ranging from a minimum of 2½ to three years up to seven years on each of the three felony counts against Christine Dunkowski to be run consecutively meaning she has to complete the minimum on each count before the next begins.

Last year a Bucks County jury found the couple guilty of four counts each of endangering the welfare of children. In the trial, one doctor called it the “worst case” of child neglect he had seen in his career.

The family was living in a dirty, bug-filled vehicle in August 2019, when police arrested the couple. None of the four children had been enrolled in school and they all showed signs of neglect. The children wore soiled diapers  and one daughter with cerebral palsy had bed sores, according to police.

The couple failed to appear for the last day of their three-day trial last October and they were taken into custody on bench warrants out of state later that month. They were not in court when a jury found them guilty.

At his February sentencing, Albert Dunkowski said his family fell on hard times about 18 months before the arrest. They lost their home, and had been living with friends and family. Alfred Dunkowski said he had been looking for a job, and claimed his wife had a substance dependence disorder.

He is currently incarcerated at state prison in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, according to state Department of Corrections information.

Next, Christine Dunkowski is awaiting a preliminary hearing scheduled for August on felony theft-related charges that occurred in Bristol Township in August 2019, according to online court records. She was arraigned on those charges in February and remains incarcerated in lieu of 10% of $5 million bail in that case.

She is accused of continuing to collect more than $22,000 in Social Security Benefits in the names of two of her four children who were removed from her and her husband’s custody after they were arrested in August 2019, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

Dunkowski allegedly continued to collect the cash benefit for one child until October 2019 and another child until last October.

Father of 6 sentenced for child abuseMiddletown man sentenced to up to 21 years in prison for 'worst case' of child neglect

More on the Dunkowski caseMiddletown couple found guilty of 'worst case' of child neglect arrested

Dunkowskis skip trial Jury finds Middletown couple guilty of child endangerment. They are now wanted after skipping out on trial

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Wife follows husband to state prison in Middletown child neglect case of 4 kids