A 34-year-old mother from Georgia, USA, was arrested over the weekend after allegedly becoming violent toward her 5-year-old daughter at a festival.
Jordyn Kahanamoku Whitlaw was charged with one count of second-degree cruelty to children, according to a Law&Crime report.
Deputies with the Columbia County Sheriff's Office were working at a Mardi Gras festival event when they were approached by a witness who reported that a “woman was ab*sing a juvenile girl at the playground area."
Highlights
- A 34-year-old mother was arrested for violent behavior toward her 5-year-old daughter at a Mardi Gras festival.
- Witnesses saw the Georgia mother throw the child into a fence, grab her by the neck, and yell at her.
- The mother claimed she could do "what she wanted" with her daughter when confronted by a witness.
Image credits: Ahmet Kurt/Unsplash (Not the actual photo)
Trigger warning: This article contains details of cruelty to children that some readers may find distressing.
The witness had been sitting at a picnic table in the playground area when she heard the woman say, "Get down."
When she looked up, the witness reportedly saw Whitlaw throw the 5-year-old girl into a chain-link fence.
"She could hear Whitlaw yelling at [the victim], but could not tell what was said," the report states.
Image credits: Visit Augusta
"[The victim] began to cry, then Whitlaw grabbed [the victim] by her ears and continued to scream at her. Whitlaw then grabbed [the victim] by her neck and began slamming [her] head into the fence."
The witness confronted Whitlaw and yelled for her to stop harming the child, to which the mother allegedly responded by saying “she could do what she wanted because it was her daughter."
A second witness told authorities that she saw the mother push the child into the fence as an attempt to make her stay in "timeout."
Image credits: Dating CSRA
When the girl ran away, Whitlaw allegedly caught up to the 5-year-old, grabbed her by her hair, and carried her back to the fence before "throwing the victim into the fence again."
The witness also said she looked back and saw that the mother had her hands around the 5-year-old’s neck.
"She saw that [the victim] was crying," the report states.
Image credits: Jordyn Whitlaw
"Another woman then ran toward Whitlaw and [the victim] to defuse the situation. Whitlaw said to the woman, 'That's my daughter, I can do what I want.'"
A third witness confirmed that Whitlaw threw the girl into the fence and grabbed her by the throat. They said the violent scene began with the child "not listening" to her mother.
Following the ordeal, deputies said the 5-year-old was left with a visible red abrasion on the right side of her neck.
Image credits: Getty Images/Unsplash (Not the actual photo)
On social media, people expressed horror at the mother’s behavior and applauded witnesses for intervening to protect the minor.
“I'm glad someone stepped in to stop any further ab*se to this 5 yr old kid instead of just sitting back watching it and recording it with their cell phone,” shared one person.
“Thank goodness she was caught but it makes you wonder what this poor little girl goes through at home,” added someone else.
A separate person wrote, “If she did that in public can you imagine what she does behind closed doors? Prayers to that little girl no one deserves that.”
“Take that child away from her..don't give the child back to her..” demanded a fourth.
Image credits: Visit Augusta
The 34-year-old was taken into custody at the scene after the girl’s father arrived to take custody of the child.
A report was also filed with the state’s Department of Family and Child Services, as per Law&Crime. It remains unclear when Whitlaw is scheduled to appear in court.
On the mother's Facebook page, one user tagged a man named James Whitlaw, seemingly the girl's father, and wrote, "Shame on you. Protect the children."
James defended the suspect, saying she has his "full support" because he knows "her real character and the FULL story of what transpired that day." He also suggested he would file defamation lawsuits.
"And just to stick it to you more, you pr*ck, here is my wife the next day with the 'ab*sed child,' reading to her before we tuck our precious daughter in to sleep at night. No marks on her body, and nothing but love from mom," he replied.
Referring to local media reports on the incident, James called the articles "one-sided" and "false," insisting that his daughter is "not harmed at all."
Image credits: Getty Images/Unsplash (Not the actual photo)
In Georgia, cruelty to children in the second degree is defined as when an adult “with criminal negligence causes a child under the age of 18 cruel or excessive physical or mental pain.”
In contrast, cruelty to children in the first degree is when a parent or guardian “willfully deprives the child of necessary sustenance to the extent that the child's health or well-being is jeopardized.”
It can also include any adult, regardless of their relationship to the minor, who “maliciously causes a child under the age of 18 cruel or excessive physical or mental pain.”
Image credits: Augusta Crime
If found guilty, Whitlaw faces between one and ten years in prison.
