Stomach churning

Elizabeth Binning in the Herald reports:

A 9-year-old girl found by police hiding in a wardrobe had suffered so much abuse that almost every part of her body was covered in injuries, including part of her scalp torn off her head as she was dragged down the hallway.

I find it hard to accept her parents are members of the same species as me. Sadly they are.

This is not the only case, sadly, of horrific child abuse. What is more unusual is that it was done to a nine year old – normally it tends to be very young children or infants.

The Weekend Herald understands the girl had been removed from her parents by Child Youth and Family not long after she was born, and was returned to them only two years ago.

Well that was a bad call.

Court documents allege the girl had suffered violent beatings since the beginning of 2009, some of which were with a stick.

In April this year, her mother allegedly repeatedly punched her in the face and hands but never sought any medical treatment for her afterwards. The Weekend Herald understands the mother did however go to the doctors herself after breaking bones in both of her own hands during the beating.

So the mother beat her child so hard, she broke bones in her own hands, yet only got treatment for herself, not her daughter.

In November the assaults intensified with her father allegedly beating her with a vacuum cleaner and a broomstick.

During the same period her mother also allegedly attacked her on an almost daily basis.

It is alleged that on November 10 she assaulted her daughter with a broomstick, repeatedly punched her in the face and body, lifted her toenail and bent it backwards and caused grievous bodily harm with a hammer.

How did no one at her school notice her bruising? Was CYF not checking up on her regularly?

It at times like this, that I do wish we had a biblical justsice system and the motehr got to get slammed by a hammer rpeatedly , and have her toenails torn off.

Of course when I clam down, I don’t want that. but you wonder how anyone could torture a nine year old girl like that.

Over the next two days she was also allegedly hit with a broomstick and a table leg, repeatedly punched in the face and body, and kicked in the groin while her mother was wearing steel-capped boots.

On November 14 her mother allegedly tore off her daughter’s toenail before pouring salt and then boiling hot water on to the bleeding wound.

Oh fuck it, I think this sort of stuff should be treated like murder, and life without parole should be an eligible sentence.

The following day abusive comments were written on her body in felt-tip pen. Also during November the mother allegedly put the girl in a hot bath and held her head under the water, starved her of food and forced her to stand in the corner for long periods of time, sometimes naked, without moving.

It is alleged one beating went from 9 o’clock one night until 2 the following morning.

Actually life without parole doesn’t even seem sufficient.

Detective Sergeant Megan Goldie said the girl’s injuries were so bad that police, and others associated with the inquiry, had all been affected.

And that would take a lot.