A Georgia woman found guilty of kid abuse was sentenced to 40 years in prison after her child told an elementary school teacher that their mother allegedly kicked and punched their legs, in addition to “choked” them, authorities said.
At the top of Candice Nicole McClure’s jury trial that unfolded over 4 days, she was convicted of 1 count of aggravated assault and two counts of cruelty to children, the Cherokee County District Attorney’s Office in Georgia announced in a news release.
McClure, 35, of Lenox, was sentenced to prison that very same day, in accordance with the office.
It was not immediately clear who represented her at trial.
The case against McClure dates back to when a Cherokee County teacher reported possible physical abuse against McClure’s child in April 2023, after the kid spoke up in regards to the abuse, prosecutors said.
“The family was recent to Cherokee County, and we consider the abuse had been ongoing before the family arrived,” Cherokee Assistant District Attorney David Bailey, the lead prosecutor in McClure’s case, said in a press release.
“The schoolteachers are the heroes on this case,” Bailey added.
After the teacher got here forward to authorities, the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services and Canton police began investigating McClure, in accordance with prosecutors.
When a DFCS worker went to McClure’s home “unannounced,” they found bruises on her “child’s leg and a patterned injury on the kid’s brow,” the district attorney’s office said.
The worker took photos of the injuries inflicted on the kid, who was taken to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta hospital, in accordance with prosecutors.
Hospital staff examined the injuries, including to the kid’s brow, that were “consistent with being struck by a belt,” the district attorney’s office said.
McClure’s child, 12 state witnesses, members of the family, law enforcement officials and others testified at her trial, in accordance with prosecutors.
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The jurors were also shown evidence of previous injuries to the kid that occurred nearly 10 years earlier, when the kid was 4, in a special county, the district attorney’s office said.
While reading a victim impact statement in court, McClure’s child said that they were grateful that the jury “heard” their story, in accordance with prosecutors.
The kid was joined by their adoptive parent, a victim advocate and a service dog named Parker, who the district attorney’s office said “provided comfort and support” to the victim.
The kid’s age was not specified by the district attorney’s office.
“The trauma this child experienced is heartbreaking,” said Cherokee County District Attorney Susan K. Treadaway in a press release. “As an alternative of protecting her own child, the defendant repeatedly inflicted abuse that caused lasting harm.”
In case you or someone you realize is experiencing child abuse, call or text Child Help Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.