A couple who allegedly starved their 12-year-old daughter were accused seven years ago of locking the girl in a room without food and water for up to 12 hours a day, according to a neighbor whose complaints led to the arrest of the parents in 2000.

Nicole Jordan, who in 2000 lived in an apartment below Denise and Melvin Wright Jr., said for six months she heard screams that "sounded like an animal" coming from the unit above in Waipahu.

Jordan and two other neighbors called police on Jan. 22, 2000. Officers ordered the apartment complex manager to let them into the Wrights' apartment, Jordan said.

There, they found a room, bolted and chained from the outside, in which a 5-year-old girl sat emaciated, with no food, water or bathroom access, Jordan said in an interview with The Advertiser.

The officers brought the girl downstairs and sat her on the apartment's stoop. She ravenously devoured food and stared at the officers and neighbors with glazed eyes, Jordan said.

"We thought it was a wild animal screaming because nothing like a human noise was coming out of that poor baby. She was ravished. She was so hungry and thirsty. She sucked down two Capri Sun juice boxes in minutes and tore through a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. She was starving," said Jordan, who now lives in Kunia.

"She had not seen the light of day, that was obvious. Immediately you could tell she was mentally incapacitated. She was a tiny little thing with tiny little feet, and she looked like she was 4 months old, not 5 years old. They would leave her alone all day, every day."

Jordan said, "She couldn't walk; her feet were turned inward, her eyes were turned inward, and we thought she was deaf and we knew she was mute."

The Wrights were arrested when they returned to their apartment. Jordan and two other neighbors were subpoenaed to testify against the Wrights, who pleaded no contest before trial.

The girl was taken into child protective custody by the state for one month, according to court records, then returned to the Wrights.

On Jan. 7 this year, she was again found to be malnourished when one of the parents called emergency medical personnel to their Kina'u Street apartment and said the daughter would not eat.

The couple was indicted this month on charges of attempted second-degree murder of their girl, now 12. Both entered not-guilty pleas through a public defender. Trial is scheduled for Sept. 10.

BRAIN DAMAGE

Child Welfare Services has maintained foster custody of the child since January. She suffered brain damage and can barely speak because of the effects of malnutrition, law enforcement sources said last week.

The girl had seen a doctor only once since she was 10 months old and had never been enrolled in school. When she was found by paramedics, she weighed less than 50 pounds. The typical weight for an 11- to 12-year-old girl is 80 to 85 pounds, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

"This is a tragic and shocking case, and we pray this young girl will continue to recover now that she is receiving proper medical care," state Human Services Director Lillian B. Koller said in a statement e-mailed through a representative. "This case also underscores the urgent need for members of the public to contact Child Welfare Services or police if they suspect child abuse or neglect has occurred. Our staff will conduct a prompt and thorough investigation and request police assistance to remove the child from the home if we determine conditions are unsafe."

Human Services would not discuss specifics on the handling of the Wright case in 2000.

"Seven years ago, they were abusing the child and no one even realized there was a problem," said Jonathan R. Won, executive director of Prevent Child Abuse Hawai'i. "There is no way to understand or speak of this. I think the public needs to realize that they need to step up and say, 'Look at this child,' because you cannot always bury your head in the sand."

NO CONTEST PLEA

In 2000, the Wrights were like hundreds of parents who each year are accused for the first time of neglect or child abuse in Ho-nolulu. They each pleaded no contest to a single charge of endangering the welfare of a minor in the second degree.

Since they had no prior criminal convictions, they were sentenced to one year of probation and sent to parenting classes.

As part of his sentence, Melvin Wright Jr. attended five of six parenting classes administered by the nonprofit group Adult Friends for Youth between Sept. 19, 2000, and Oct. 24, 2000. He was described as a positive participant in a letter put in a court file supporting the termination of his probation.

"Mr. Wright participated well in all activities within the group, sharing some of his issues and concerns with other parents," wrote a former counselor and program director with Adult Friends for Youth. "I enjoyed having Mr. Wright in the group."

Sidney M. Rosen, the semi-retired founder of Adult Friends for Youth, said Wright was not a client, but part of a court-ordered class the agency offers for offenders. Outside of the five two-hour sessions, Adult Friends for Youth was not responsible for following up with Melvin Wright.

"We get a mix of people who attend these classes but we don't follow up with them, so once the class is complete we have no relationship with them other than one they would initiate on their own," Rosen said. "It is such a sordid case and it is the kind of thing that makes your stomach turn."

As part of her sentence, Denise Wright attended classes at the 'Ewa Beach office of the state Child and Family Services department from June 1 until Sept. 9, 2000. She received a congratulatory certificate confirming her successful completion of the court-ordered parenting class.

The Wrights filed for divorce in March.

There are more than 7,000 complaints and tips phoned into the state Department of Human Services child abuse hotline each year, according to Prevent Child Abuse Hawai'i, far more than can be investigated by police and state agencies. In 2005, there were more than 4,000 confirmed cases of child abuse in Hawai'i, according to the nonprofit organization.

"I really hope people in our community realize there are some children that are lost and forgotten out there," said deputy city prosecutor Maurice M. Arrisgado, who will argue the case against the Wrights. "People that know should report these things because from 2000 to 2007, nobody knew this girl existed. This child was never socialized, she never went anywhere."

Reach Peter Boylan at pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com.