Ariel Castro is seen in a courtroom during the sentencing phase, in Cleveland. Castro, convicted of holding three women captive in a house he turned into a prison and raping them repeatedly for a decade, was sentenced to life without parole plus 1,000 years. He later committed suicide in Sept. 2013.
The women — Amanda Berry, Michelle Knight and Gina DeJesus — have detailed the horrifying accounts of their years in captivity. The women had to follow strict rules, including bizarre things like keeping pots in the center of the stove while cooking, and lived in dirty, unhygenic conditions. Each of them have described being raped repeatedly, barely fed, and chained to walls and poles. Amanda also gave birth to daughter Jocelyn with him in December 2006. Jocelyn later became imperative in womens’ dramatic escape, recognizing that her “daddy” was not home one day at only six years old. Amanda then made a run for the door, and was able to create enough commotion for a neighbor to help break through the alarm system and padlocked door.
