Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By Stephanie F. Brown, Attorney and David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
A Clayton County, Georgia jury found a mother guilty on October 1, 2009 of eight criminal charges, including cruelty to children and contributing to the deprivation of a minor for starving her twin infant sons. The mother and the boys’ father were high on Methadone and other prescription drugs as well as alcohol and were not able to care for the babies. Relatives of the babies intervened—except for the maternal grandmother, a former special education official, who failed to report the child abuse. The grandmother will be tried on criminal charges later this month.
By the time authorities intervened, the 13 month old babies were severely malnourished. The mother blamed her sons’ pediatrician, claiming that the doctor did not tell her what and when to feed the babies. Apparently, the mother believed that it was appropriate childcare to go for literally days without feeding the infants.
The boys now live with their paternal grandmother and aunt. According to the paternal grandmother, the boys are developmentally delayed and suffered brain damage as a result of the abuse.