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WARNING: Disturbing content
A five-year-old girl was repeatedly hit with a wooden spoon, denied food, called “dumb” and a “creepy bug” and even had her head shaved by a woman who cared for her in a “reprehensible” pattern of abuse.
The horrific details of the cruelty towards the girl were revealed during her sentencing in the Brisbane District Court on Wednesday.
Chillingly, the court was told it was not the first time the mother had embarked on a similar offence.
Despite this, the woman had not subjected other children in her home to the same type of abuse as the girl during the same period.
“There is no real explanation for the circumstances that bring him back here,” Chief Judge Brian Devereaux said during his sentencing remarks.
The woman pleaded guilty to a single count of cruelty to a child and multiple other counts of assault causing bodily harm while armed and common assault.
His abuse of the boy lasted from February until the end of May 2022, Crown prosecutor Zach Kaplan told the court.
The horrific details of the cruelty towards the girl were revealed during her sentencing in the Brisbane District Court on Wednesday.
The court was told that the girl, who is not one of the woman’s biological daughters, was repeatedly hit with a wooden spoon, suffering bruises and scars, while being denied food and meals while the other children ate.
Kaplan said the child had come into the woman’s care through a mutual friend in January 2022 following an incident at another home.
He said the woman psychologically abused the girl, calling her a “creepy bug” and saying she was “dumb,” in addition to the physical attacks.
The court was told Child Safety became involved in concerns for the girl’s welfare.
The girl’s head was shaved when she was returned to her biological parents in May 2022.
“Instead of trying to find any kind of way to improve or help the child, (his) response was to shave his head because he had nits,” Mr. Kaplan said.
When she was taken to the hospital, the girl had bruises on her face and legs, was thin and walked with a limp while complaining of hunger.
One injury included a 1.5cm scar on the scalp after the woman hit her with a wooden spoon, along with a bruised eye after the girl was hit in the face.
If it were not for the intervention of Child Safety, the consequences could have been much more dire, the court was told.
“This is reprehensible conduct,” Mr. Kaplan said.
“She represents a risk to children not only of her own biological lineage but also to any children she comes into contact with.”
Nicholas Brown, the woman’s defense lawyer, said his client had complied with bail conditions requiring him not to have contact with any of his own children.
He said his client had taken the child in with “good intentions” from her friend, but was finding it difficult to manage.
Brown said the situation became “too much” for the woman who had other children at home.
“She has attempted in her own way to demonstrate remorse for her conduct since then by complying with her bail conditions, supporting her family both financially and emotionally,” he said.
“And (by) showing the outside community that she can be a good mother.”
There is no indication that any of the woman’s other children were abused.
Judge Devereaux imposed a top sentence of three years’ jail, making the woman eligible for parole in January next year.