Attorney for Kimberly Sullivan says her stepson was not held captive

Kimberly Sullivan’s attorney says the allegations that she held her stepson captive are flat-out false.

In a one-on-one interview with NBC Connecticut on Tuesday, defense attorney Ioannis Kaloidis pushed back on the allegations that have shocked the nation over the last month.

“My client is adamant she has done nothing wrong, and this man was not held in a room for 20 years,” Kaloidis said.

He said Sullivan is “getting by” and her life “has been turned upside down” since being charged in March with holding her stepson captive for 20 years. The warrant alleges her stepson was kept in a room from age 11 to 31 when he set a fire to escape in February.

First responders said he was emaciated when they found him, weighing just 68 pounds.

The victim released a statement last week, saying he’s getting better and stronger since he was rescued. A fundraiser for him has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to help with his recovery.

When asked how his condition could be explained, Kaloidis said the man’s weight has always been an issue since he was a child.

“Sixty-eight pounds -- it doesn’t mean that she starved him, and everyone’s just forgetting to connect the dots. He’s 68 pounds, therefore it must be true. That’s not how this works. The people that made those claims, the first responders, the detectives, what they saw is what they saw, and it doesn’t prove anything. There’s been no actual explanation. There’s been no investigation into his weight. We’ve gotten records. His weight has been an issue since he was a child. His weight was an issue that was addressed with DCF, with the doctors, and my client was cleared multiple times. It’s -- it’s not right to assume that just because he’s underweight, that she’s done something wrong,” Kaloidis said.

NBC Connecticut obtained photos from inside the Blake Street home through a Freedom of Information Act request. Kaloidis was not happy when those were released, and said he questions why the department did so.

When asked what he makes of the photos, he said they’re just that.

“They paint only part of the story. They do so in a prejudicial light, and they don’t accurately reflect all the evidence in the case,” Kaloidis said. “The pictures are just pictures. They don’t really mean anything. You see a house after a fire that’s not in the best condition. What’s more important is what’s not in those photos - any locked doors, any chains, any handcuffs, any bars, any evidence of restraint.”

Photos: Inside Waterbury home where man says he was held captive

The photos show cluttered rooms and locks on doors.

“There was a lock on almost every interior door inside that house. Is anyone claiming that all those doors were locked? That anyone else was locked? No. the only person who’s saying they were locked anywhere is the accuser. And the only evidence of it is their word. I would ask people to step back and think logically as they approach this. Don’t rush to judgment. Just because someone says they were locked in a room, and you see a slide lock or a chain lock, is that what’s gonna keep you in a room for 20 years without anything else? To me, the story doesn’t add up,” Kaloidis said.

In court on Tuesday, the case was continued to May 27.

Kaloidis filed motions for Sullivan to get her cell phone back in her possession, and for the address on the protective order against her to be changed so that she can visit the Blake Street home and retrieve her belongings.

“There are things she needs, there’s reasons why she would need to go back there. So obviously that’s something we would want to do,” he explained.

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Kaloidis said it will be a long process to select a jury, and he may ask to move the case out of Waterbury.

“When it comes time to select a jury, our primary concern is trying to select an impartial jury. Trying to protect our client’s right to a fair trial, and making sure we have jurors that understand, believe in and accept the presumption of innocence,” he said. “She’s adamant she’s done nothing wrong, she’s hired us to defend her, and we intend on doing that all through trial. We anticipate a favorable verdict, we’re confident in our case, we’re gonna continue to build the case, and we look forward to her day in court.”

In the meantime, he’s filed to have Sullivan’s GPS monitor removed.

“Some of the arguments we made at the time that that GPS was added also dealt with the presumption of innocence, and the appearance that adding those conditions could impact the way she’s viewed and the presumption of innocence. Because let’s be clear, when that condition was added, she had done nothing wrong and there was no allegation that she had done anything wrong that would have changed the lay of the land at the time, nothing to change the circumstances of the case,” he said.

In court on Tuesday, the victim’s biological mother was in attendance.

“We just need to make sure justice is done for him. It’s all about the justice for him,” said Tracy Vallerand. “He sounds very strong and it’s very encouraging that he’s actually able to speak up and take his life back. It still breaks my heart because he still needs to know what love is. He was denied that.”