Manchester woman gets prison for endangering her kids' welfare

Oct. 6—A Manchester woman will spend time in prison after pleading guilty to five counts of endangering the welfare of her five children living in "squalid conditions," prosecutors said.

Candace Krauklin also pleaded guilty to a single count of reckless conduct, according to the Hillsborough County Attorney's Office.

Krauklin, who's in her mid-30s, was sentenced to 1-1/3 to 4 years at the state prison for women in Concord. She also received five 12-month concurrent sentences to be suspended for five years after her release from prison, according to prosecutors.

Last January, the children, all under 14, were removed from the home at 407 Lake Ave., police said.

Krauklin and her husband, Steven Legault, were accused of violating their duty of care and protection owed to their children when the children were discovered to be living in deplorable conditions in the family home, according to prosecutors.

Manchester Department of Public Works employees heard a young boy yelling through a barred-up window. He was yelling for help and saying that he was trapped inside the house and couldn't get out, prosecutors said.

The workers called Manchester police. The boy's father wouldn't allow the police into the apartment. When police did enter, "they were struck by the stench and squalid conditions," prosecutors said.

They found the children living in extremely unsanitary conditions, according to prosecutors.

The children have since been placed with other families.