A Butler County judge convicted Shawn and Joanna Blackston of child endangering Friday despite a lack of evidence supporting allegations they beat, bound and locked a 12-year-old girl the basement of their Middletown home.

The Blackstons, who remain free on bond, will have a pre-sentencing hearing at 9:30 a.m. Dec. 18. The couple faces up to six months in jail on the misdemeanor charge.

Visiting Judge Matthew Crehan said while there wasn’t sufficient evidence and testimony to support some of the 12-year-old’s “very serious” allegations, he did find the couple guilty of treating the girl differently than the rest of the family. That treatment included force feeding her peanut butter until she gagged and threw up, belittling her with “demoralizing vulgar language,” and denying or limiting food to the point of her thin and gaunt appearance on July 3 when she was removed with her siblings and step-siblings.

Crehan called the household “dysfunctional.”

“The court finds beyond a reasonable doubt that the totality of this conduct on the part of the defendants, either as a principle or as an aider and abettor violated their duty as a parent …to care for the well-being of their child and stepchild,” Crehan said. “The court finds beyond a reasonable doubt that this conduct was reckless and created a substantial risk to the health and safety of (the girl).”

A pre-trial hearing in Butler County Juvenile Court on Nov. 27 and a civil trial Dec. 10 and 11 will determine if the Blackstons will ever be reunited with their children and stepchildren again. Six of the couple’s eight children in their blended family were removed by Butler County Children Services on July 3 and have been in foster care ever since.

Shawn, 40, and Joanna Blackston, 37, just listened, showing little emotion, as Crehan announced his verdict.

Crehan said, when making his decision, he looked at the case in four areas: the different treatment the Blackstons gave to the 12-year-old; the allegations of the girl being locked in the basement for nearly a month and forced to live in the basement, which were not supported with testimony and evidence; and the allegation she was physically abused with duct tape.

Neither the Blackstons nor their defense attorneys, Tim Upton and Ched Peck, offered comment after the verdict Friday morning. However, both attorneys later told The Journal it was important to note the lack of evidence the girl was ever locked in the basement.

Throughout the trial the defense attorneys argued the 12-year-old girl was lying and that the Blackstons treated all of their kids the same. They all had free reign of the house, which included being allowed to eat and snack, use the restroom and shower, Peck and Upton argued.

“We obviously worked very hard on an acquittal in the case,” said Upton, noting he respected the judge’s detailed decision. “I think you can clearly see that in three-fourths of the state’s allegations there wasn’t enough evidence to find them guilty.”

Peck, who represented Joanna Blackston, declined comment due to the upcoming hearing regarding the future of the Blackstons’ six children.

Assistant prosecutors Josh Muennich and Kim Schneider said they were pleased with the outcome of the trial.

“I would like to commend the three young girls who were courageous enough to come into court and testify, and without their efforts and their bravery we wouldn’t be able to prosecute this case,” said Muennich, who also commended the Middletown police investigation.

The prosecution painted the Blackstons as a couple who controlled, abused and neglected not only the 12-year-old at the center of this case, but her 15-year-old sister who she shared the basement with and who was removed from the home earlier this year. They also characterized them as selfish and self-serving.

The case was prompted by an anonymous complaint that led to a July 3 visit to and investigation of the home at 1606 Philadelphia Ave. by Children Services. The Middletown police were called after they found the 12-year-old girl allegedly locked in the basement.

The Blackstons were arrested on July 7 at a Sharonville motel.