They are a “homeschooling family of 2 adults, [10] children, 3 dogs, 2 cats and a few random farm animals. Living a simple, back to basics life.” Living off the land in a 280-square-foot Gilligan’s Island-style stick cabin without modern comforts like vaccines, or heat, or toilet paper may not be for everyone, but it is where the Nauglers want to be.
There’s just one problem: The state’s Child Protective Services and the local sheriff say the conditions aren’t fit for anyone. Last week—after receiving a tip that the brood was living in squalor, without running water or access to a septic system, and that Joe had threatened a neighbor with a gun (for which he’s plead not guilty)—officers removed all 10 children from their parents’ care and arrested Nicole for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Nicole Naugler writes that as of Monday, the children were split into four different homes.
According to the complaint, which the Nauglers posted on Facebook, the only shed on the Naugler’s property was reserved for the animals. The two makeshift tents that the family called home were surrounded by “numerous piles of garbage, broken glass and nails,” which were scattered about the property. The kids were neither enrolled in school nor registered as homeschoolers with the school board.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member