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A 29-year-old Washington state woman was charged Monday with first-degree child abuse after doctors said she nearly blinded her toddlerby replacing the child's antibiotic eyedrops with household bleach.
A 29-year-old Washington state woman was charged Monday with first-degree child abuse after doctors said she nearly blinded her toddler daughter by replacing the child’s antibiotic eyedrops with household bleach.
Jennifer Lynn Mothershead of Buckley, Wash., was arrested Friday after a nearly yearlong investigation that revealed that she inflicted severe eye and head injuries on the child, court documents show. She was held by Pierce County officials in lieu of $150,000 bail.
The child’s injuries were recounted earlier this month in a medical journal in which doctors at Seattle Children’s Hospital revealed they treated the girl for nearly two months and may have missed signs of abuse.
“Of course we felt guilty, we knew from very early on that she had this,” said Dr. Avery H. Weiss, of the Roger Johnson Clinical Vision Laboratory at Seattle Children’s. “But we were reluctant to implicate the mother until we were 100 percent sure.”
Mothershead was separated from the child’s father, Cody B. Mothershead, who is a math teacher at a local high school, White River High School, in Buckley, a town of 4,500 in western Washington state. School district officials said Monday they were not aware of the extent of the child’s injuries or whether Cody Mothershead was aware of the abuse. As a teacher, he would be required by law to report any suspicion of child abuse.
Mothershead told investigators his estranged wife wouldn’t allow him to administer the eye drops and used the child’s medical condition to deny visits with the girl, whom he saw for a few hours every week to 10 days.
Court records showed that Jennifer Mothershead said the child’s eyes had been swollen shut for four weeks and that the girl slept 20 to 22 hours a day because of the discomfort.
Weiss said the toddler was brought to Seattle Children’s with an unusual eye infection and a corneal abrasion.
“We thought, this doesn’t all fit together unless someone is putting something on the eye,” Weiss told msnbc.com.
When the child was hospitalized, her condition would improve. When she went home, it got worse, Weiss said.
On May 12, 2011, the child, then 14 months old and identified in the court records only as K.L.M., was airlifted to a local trauma center, Harborview Medical Center, with a subdural hematoma, or brain hemorrhage, court records show.
The mother appeared “unperturbed about the situation and said she had no idea what caused K.M.’s head injury,” the records show.
She told the medical staff the child had to be swaddled when eye drops or antibiotics were administered.
After the head injury, doctors confiscated the child’s eye drops.
“When the eye drop bottle was opened, a noxious smell filled the room,” Weiss wrote. Court records say the contents caused burning eyes and mild nausea for staff members present.
Laboratory tests confirmed a pH of 6.0 and the presence of bleach, according to the Journal of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus.
It’s not clear why Jennifer Mothershead allegedly abused the child. Weiss said the situation did not appear to be a case of Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome, in which parents sometimes abuse children by making them appear to be ill in order to gain attention for themselves.
“This was purposeful child abuse,” said Weiss.
There may have been an indication that Jennifer Mothershead was mentally ill, doctors said. Ben Vrieze, a Buckley man who said he bought Mothershead's house last year, said the place was strewn with court papers.
“She didn’t seem balanced at all,” he said.
The little girl’s vision is permanently impaired, Weiss said, who added that he hasn’t been able to fully examine her vision because she is unable to sit still.
“This child isn’t going to be normal for the rest of her life,” he said.
Weiss said he wrote the journal article as a way to urge other ophthalmologists to consider child abuse as a possible cause of eye injuries that don’t heal.
Mothershead gave birth to a second child in August, according to a Washington state child protective services official. That child, whose gender was not identified, was placed in the care of relatives. No charges of abuse have been filed in connection with that infant.
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This is one of the most horrific things I've heard. Dear Lord, how could you possibly do that to your baby? I do hope this mother is taken out of society and never has a child again.
Long prison term with "eye drops" every day.
Heng her high.
Shame, shame, shame on the doctor(s) who suspected and did nothing. He(They) should be held accountable, as well!
They wouldn't have been afraid if they suspected the father. The biased treatment against men/fathers has got to stop... I'm sure if the father (the sane party in this case) was there, he would've reported this. Albeit, the authorities would've probably arrested him in the process.
Doesn't seem like the father is too smart either. If my ex never let me give my daughter her eye drops and something was wrong with her eyes, I would grab the drops and investigate. Wouldn't you?
This is just disgusting. Seeing a friend and her husband go through infertility and people like this lady get the blessing of kids makes it even more disturbing. I hope they are able to do something for that child's sight and she and her dad are reunited. May she have a happy and beautiful life.
This is by far one of the most DISGUSTING articles I have ever read- how is the world can they "INVESTIGATE" this for a year? In the meantime, this poor defenseless child is BLINDED by her own Mother's hands - can you imagine what this child will go thru the rest of her life knowing her mother blinded her on purpose. I'm sorry, but the more I read things like this, I believe in "an eye for an eye" and she needs to have bleach dropped into her eyes everyday, and while they are at it, pour the bleach down the mother's throat!
America is such a mess, but that is what happens when they take GOD out of everything and everywhere - this is what happens to a GOD-LESS Nation.
My heart and prayers are with this little girl
ConcernedMa - you're joking right? What do you mean you don't understand why it follow for a year? They (the system) had to be 100% sure before implicating the mother. However, if the father was so much as suspected of... the child would've been removed immediately. Do not act "brand new" about this, the system (judges, lawyers, CPS, child support agencies, and our Fed Gov't) is clearly aware of this lopsided problem. They refuse to do anything about it because it would affect the profit sharing amongst the aforementioned.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again, give these sick twisted people to me. They will then know the pain that their poor sweet innocent babies have gone through at their hands. Children should never haver have to suffer like that from anyone!
let the punishment fit the crime. Twelve pounds of pressure will destroy the eyes.
Please don't put her in prison so we have to pay to feed her. Just hang her and get it over with. Sorry, I do believe in the death penalty. Anybody that can do this needs to die.
An eye injury is one of the most painful things that can happen to you.
I want this mother treated the same way she treated her daughter.
They will find a way to blame the dad, and give the child BACK to the mom (or another family member). He'll probably keep paying child support to the mother's parents. With jail time imminent for mom, the courts need to keep the child support case open in order to receive their annual Federal funding. Closing child support case is bad for business(es).
This woman is insane. Who could do this to a poor innocent child??? Especailly her own flesh and blood. Eye for an eye. I hope the punishment fits the crime.
this bitch needs bleach in her eyes for the next few years! sickening
Put the crazy beyotch AWAY for life. I'll bet she knows right from wrong and she knew exactly what she was doing. In cases like this I am all for mandatory sterilization. Ugh................just absolutely horrific. Poor baby girl to have to live through that and have her life permanently damaged all by the hands off her MOTHER!
Pam46(blahblah) - you seem surprised it's her mom that was abusing her. This is why no one did anything for more than a year. Society PRESUMES all mothers are Angels, and most men work for Lucifer. This is where the problem lies.
if this truly happened this lady should never see the outside of a jail. she should be sterilized so she can never bring another child into this world. disgusting. dead is to good for her.
This woman, should be given the same treatment, she has bestowed on her helpless infant... then, she should be gased... why put another burden on the tax payers.... there would be much less crime if bad, horrific people like these, were truely punished...
I love how people preface their posts with "I'm not for the death penality, but..." Either you are or you're not, there is no in between. That being said death should be an option for every state where special circumastances exist that warrant that punishment. Whether this mother deserves it I am not sure, it sounds more like she is ill and needs treatment, crimes more fitting are along the lines of mad dog killers /rapists like the lovely pair from Conneticut (may they burn in hell).
ok someone needs to hold this woman down and pour stuff in her eyes every day that she is in prison! As a mother this just makes me want to puke and puts fire in my blood!
well, i'd be in prison if i found someone doing that to my child. i'd beat them to death and call it justice.
There's a pool going in our office. The mom will plead mental illness;get shipped off to a "Bellvue-like" hospital for a couple years. Get released on good behavior, and regain custody of the child. We all know dad's can take care of their child, especially their daughter. Well, at least this is what society wants the majority to believe.
I've got my dollar on moms regaining custody.
Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome?
Thats another EXCUSE that females can use to escape JUSTICE! When they are really E-V-I-L! No damn "mental defect/illness" to it. It makes me SICK that these evil bitches are able to get off by going to a puff farm instead of where they BELONG - PRISON! When are the courts going to put a STOP to this kind of stupidity!
In the words of Troy (Swamp People)....
SHOOOOOT! SHOOOOOT!
wow...someone should be shot or made to swallow a bottle of bleach worthless mom anyways
I am a medical professional and believe me, after a little bit of experience, a practitioner (MD, RN, LICSW, RT, etc) can detect abuse. One does not need multiple encounters with a victim, child or otherwise, to figure it out. The staff at Seattle Children's Hospital needs a TON of retraining and personnel need to be dismissed because they collectively failed this child.