McAlester Couple Sentenced For Child Abuse And Neglect

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced today that McAlester residents Billy James Menees, age 30, and Ashley Dawn Marie Schardein, age 28, were sentenced on child abuse and neglect charges.

Menees was sentenced to 192 months of imprisonment for one count of Child Abuse in Indian Country and 192 months of imprisonment for one count of Child Neglect in Indian Country.  The terms were ordered to be served concurrently.

In a separate hearing held on April 1, 2025, Schardein was sentenced to 240 months of imprisonment for one count of Child Abuse in Indian Country and 240 months of imprisonment for one count of Child Neglect in Indian Country.  The terms were ordered to be served concurrently.

The charges arose from an investigation by the McAlester Police Department, the District Attorney’s Office for District 18, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

On February 23, 2023, Menees and Schardein were each found guilty by a federal jury at trial on charges of child abuse and neglect.  According to investigators, on May 9, 2020, officers responding to a welfare call arrived at the shared residence of Menees and Schardein.  Inside, they discovered an extremely malnourished and underweight 10 year old child, covered in bruises and confined to a barren, unfurnished room.  At trial, the government presented evidence showing that beginning in January 2019, Menees and Schardein regularly isolated, confined, restrained, neglected, underfed, tortured, and beat the child over a 16 month period.

The crimes occurred in Pittsburg County, within the boundaries of the Choctaw Nation Reservation, and within the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

“There is no justification for the abuse endured by the child victim in this case.  What makes this particularly disturbing, is the treatment was at the hands of the people responsible for the child’s well-being and safety,” said FBI Oklahoma City Special Agent in Charge Doug Goodwater.  “Thanks to the vigilance of a caring third-party who reported the abuse, and the thorough investigation by the FBI and our law enforcement partners, justice has been served for these two defendants.”

“I am thankful for the tireless work of the McAlester Police Department, the OSBI, the FBI, and my investigators in rescuing an innocent child from unspeakable abuse and for the exceptional work of the Assistant U.S. Attorneys in obtaining justice for the victim,” said District 18 District Attorney Chuck Sullivan.  “If you suspect a child is being abused or neglected, please do the right thing and call law enforcement.  Together we can make a difference in protecting the most vulnerable in our communities.”

“The defendants’ horrific acts of abuse and neglect are deserving of lengthy prison sentences,” said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson.  “The U.S. Attorney’s Office stands together with law enforcement and the community in our pursuit to hold offenders who harm children accountable.”

The Honorable Timothy D. DeGiusti, Chief U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, sitting by assignment, presided over the hearings in Oklahoma City.  Menees and Schardein will remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicole Paladino and Caila Cleary represented the United States.