He had to wait until the trial ended, but now that Recardo Wimbush is beginning a 20-year prison sentence, he admitted to Channel 2 Action News his regrets.
The 35-year-old and his 39-year-old wife, Therian Wimbush, were found guilty of second-degree child cruelty Friday.
They kept their oldest son in a tiny basement room for 18 months and did not seek medical attention for a younger son who had a malignant skin tumor that one witness described as the size of an adult fist.
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The parents admitted they were wrong in court Monday, and Recardo Wimbush told Channel 2 that he regrets tearing his family apart.
“In this situation, you just kind of think you’re doing what's best for the children and it ended up backfiring,” Wimbush said.
The former Georgia Tech football star told the news station he didn’t take a plea deal in exchange for testimony against his wife because they were partners in parenting.
“That’s my wife, we are a team,” Wimbush said. “Even if she had a majority of the say so.”
Wimbush then told Channel 2 that although he wasn't home with his wife and their 10 children all the time, he knows he “could have done something.”
Though he remained stoic during the trial, Wimbush started to cry as he spoke to Channel 2 about his children.
However, Wimbush said he doesn’t regret acting as his own attorney because it allowed him to speak to his children.
A judge ruled that the parents cannot communicate with any of their children until they are adults.
MORE: Wimbush child abuse case: 5 things to know about Recardo Wimbush
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