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How did the 16 Siders children in Vinton County go undetected for so many years?

Law enforcement officers gather outside a home in Vinton County where four people were arrested on charges of child endangerment.
Thomas Billington
/
WOUB
Law enforcement officers gather outside a home in Vinton County where four people were arrested on charges of child endangerment.

Falling through the cracks: How could 16 siblings in the Siders family escape the notice of so many officials for so many years?

The case, while extreme, brings to the forefront one family's multi-generational story of poverty, child marriage and attempts to live under the radar.

But what about the larger questions the situation raises: Did the state fail this family? These children? How are child welfare advocates, state officials and others working to respond and repair the cracks in the system.

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