Oklahoma Parents Charged with Abuse, Neglect After Daughter Delivers Baby at 11
We brought you the story yesterday on an 11-year-old girl who gave birth at home in Muskogee County, Oklahoma. New details have now emerged after a paternity test confirmed that the child’s stepfather was the father of her baby.
The 34-year-old man has been charged with one felony count of child sexual abuse and six counts of felony child neglect. The girl’s mother, 33, is facing charges of enabling child sexual abuse and multiple counts of neglect.
Prosecutors allege that between January and August of this year, the stepfather repeatedly assaulted the girl, while the mother failed to intervene or seek help.
Court records paint a disturbing picture. The girl had not received medical care in over a year, went through her entire pregnancy without prenatal attention, and ultimately delivered her baby at home on August 16 with no professional support.
Investigators also discovered that five younger siblings, ages 2 to 9, were living in “deplorable conditions,” surrounded by dog feces, with some children unclothed and lacking even the most basic care.
Authorities removed all six children from the home on August 19. Both parents are now being held in custody, each on a $100,000 bond, while they await further court proceedings.
The young girl’s ordeal represents a denial of her right to life, survival, and development, her right to protection from sexual abuse and exploitation, and her right to health and medical care. The unsanitary and unsafe living conditions violated the children’s right to an adequate standard of living, while the neglect breached their right to safety and parental care.
Read more about the article here
