A Lower Macungie Township couple accused of attempting to fatally starve 15-year-old twin boys in their care will be represented by taxpayer-paid private defense attorneys at a rate of $135 an hour, a Lehigh County judge ruled Thursday.
Tracy Dechant, 43, the boys’ mother, and her husband, Joshua Dechant, 36, told Judge James T. Anthony that while they bring home about $6,000 a month from their full-time jobs, child support and the mortgage on their $600,000 home leave them with nothing to spare toward legal fees.
“We are just trying to keep our heads above water and not lose our house,” Tracy Dechant told the judge.
The couple’s lack of legal representation has stalled the case, which began in January 2024 when one of the twins went to a neighbor’s home asking for food, prompting a police investigation. The teens told authorities that they endured punishments including standing outside naked in the freezing cold and being denied food and water, police said.
When admitted to the hospital, one brother weighed approximately 53 pounds and the other weighed approximately 55 pounds. Doctors said boys of their size and age should weigh approximately 110-143 pounds.
The Dechants do not qualify for public defenders. County judges have discretion to appoint defense attorneys for unrepresented persons, especially in complex cases.
Before making his decision, Anthony questioned the Dechants about their finances. Tracy Dechant told the judge that she makes about $50,000 a year as customer service representative and Joshua Dechant makes about $70,000 at a heating, ventilation and air conditioning firm.
They have a $2,500-per-month mortgage and are a month behind on payments, Tracy Dechant told the judge, and pay $1,900 in child support for three children. They’ve already paid $21,800 in legal fees for one hearing before dropping their attorneys, and had to put up approximately $30,000 toward bail, which was $750,000 each initially with $200,000 added after additional charges were filed, she said.
“We just don’t have any money left at the end of the month,” Tracy Dechant told the judge.
The Dechants are charged with aggravated assault, conspiracy to commit third-degree murder and other charges. If convicted of aggravated assault, they could serve at least two years behind bars.
Prosecutors did not take a position on the couple’s request for court-appointed lawyers. The Dechants’ new attorneys, Molly Heidorn and Eric Harakal, did not comment after the hearing.
The Dechants will return to court May 7. At that time the judge could rule on the prosecution’s motion to allow jurors to hear the teens’ statements to doctors and neighbors under the “tender age doctrine,” a controversial exception that allows statements by children 16 years and younger.
Laurie Mason Schroeder is a freelance reporter.