Updated

A Massachusetts couple is facing charges after officials say they nearly starved their toddler to death.

Police say the 2-year-old son of Kellie and Joshua Theriault of Holden, Mass., weighed just 17 pounds when police went to their house in February. The visit came after an anonymous caller reported the boy had bruises on his face.

At the time, the state removed the boy and three siblings from the house.

The Theriaults are scheduled to appear in court next month to face misdemeanor charges of reckless endangerment.

The case is complicated by conflicting testimony from two doctors.

Dr. Rebecca Moles at UMass Memorial Medical Center said the boy would have died if he hadn't been removed from the house.

The boy's family doctor, Dr. William Blake, said the boy was undersized, but healthy.