The lines between storage and residence continue to blur. As storage facilities increase the quality of their offerings, providing a range of electricity, cleanliness, coverage, even heating and cooling…some people resort to living in the storage unit meant only for their possessions.
“A mother arrested for a domestic violence incident in Trenton this morning was found to have her 5- and 10-year-old boys living inside a narrow storage unit in Ewing, police said today.
Trenton Officer Robert Arnwine, who interviewed Johnson after her arrest, went to the Extra Space Storage facility on the 1400 block of Prospect Street to check out the woman’s claims her boys were inside one of the units there, Kieffer said.
“They open it up,” Kieffer said of the officers who went to the unit. “That’s where their house is – that’s where they’re living.”
“It was just filthy in there,” he added.
Both children were taken to Capital Health Regional Medical Center in Hopewell to be checked out and were released to the care of the state Department of Child and Families.” – NJ.com
The good news in this story is that both children were recovered in decent health and hopefully will receive rehabilitation. The court system will then decide whether or not they are to be placed in foster care, but it seems like a viable option based on the details of this story.
The criminal activity aside, this story is of particular interest to self storage owners and tenants. Owners need to be aware of extended stay time of residents. Facilities like DAK have 24/7 video surveillance so it’s much easier to notice suspicious behavior. Large facilities without surveillance have plenty of nooks and crannies for people to escape into. If tenants see that kind of behavior they should notify the owner immediately.
It’s sad to hear about the plight of these two children. Of course, the storage facility may have been the only thing keeping them from absolute homelessness. In keeping with that reality, we should treat situations like these with tact, care, and prompt action.