Death penalty sought for couple who ‘had sex and ate pizza as they tortured three-year-old son to death’

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for a couple who allegedly subjected a toddler to weeks of abuse including whippings, hangings upside down and beatings with a frying pan and metal rod.

Jillian Tait and boyfriend Gary Fellenbaum were arrested in November, accused of subjecting Tait’s child to escalating abuse over a period of weeks before finally torturing him to death over a three-day period.

And Chester County District Attorney’s Office told the pair at their arraignments this week that prosecutors will seek the death penalty because the boy died by torture and was younger than 12.

The alleged actions of the pair were described as an ‘American horror story’ by district attorney Thomas Hogan, who, noting that there was no evidence of drugs or alcohol involved, said it was ‘just evilness’.

The prosecutor said what started as spankings graduated to ‘concentrated, repeated, escalating abuse.’

Police said that the abuse Gary Fellenbaum tried to pass off as ‘discipline’ included throwing the toddler against a wall, punching him off a chair and then taping him to the chair for further beatings.

Fellenbaum’s 21-year-old estranged wife, Amber Fellenbaum, was also charged with child endangerment for allegedly failing to help the toddler.