US mum jailed for neglecting son’s dental care
An American mother has been sentenced to nine months in jail for failing to get dental treatment for her son.
Kathren Ann Carter, from Yakima, Washington, was sentenced for second-degree criminal mistreatment on Monday 1 March 10.
Jurors found her guilty of failing to get treatment for her 10-year-old developmentally disabled adopted son who had abscesses in his mouth. He didn’t receive treatment for more than a year.
It was ruled that Carter would spend three months in custody and serve the remainder of her sentence at home under electronic monitoring.
Speaking for the prosecution, a doctor alleged that the pain the child had experienced was similar to that of being shot with a nail gun.
The boy was reportedly unable to explain the pain he was in because of his disability.
He was taken from Carter’s care in 2008 and placed with foster parents.
Washington state is, in a separate case, trying to stop Carter’s parental rights despite her claim that she meant no harm to the child.
A representative for the defence also claimed that she had never caused any other harm to the child, that she was unaware of the abscesses, that no issues had emerged until her husband died and that she lacked money to transport the child to medical appointments.
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