An Ohio mother has been brought to court, accused of persistently subjecting her two-year-old son to medical abuse since his birth.
Jennifer Parker, 43, stands charged with three counts of child endangerment, according to a report by WLWT.
Assistant Butler County Prosecutor Lindsay Sheehan explained in court that Parker allegedly engaged in a pattern of excessive and inappropriate medical treatment while neglecting necessary care for her child.
“Under Parker’s care, this child, now aged two, has been hospitalized over 20 times,” Sheehan stated. The numerous hospital visits took place both in Florida, where Parker previously resided, and in Ohio, her current home.
This spring, concerns about potential medical abuse were raised by doctors at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and the Cleveland Clinic. Since the child was removed from Parker’s custody in May, he has shown significant improvement and has not required any hospital admissions, Sheehan reported.
In court, Sheehan further alleged that Parker interfered with her son’s ability to eat by tampering with his feeding lines and administering insulin or glucose to him unnecessarily, despite the absence of any insulin or glucose intolerance in the child.
Regarding the feeding tube, Sheehan said that medical staff provided “multiple instances where the mother was not providing appropriate medical care, despite her child showing all instances and ability, for instance, not to have a feeding tube, and she was refusing to move him off that feeding tube and provide oral feeds,” Law&Crime reported.
This past spring, Sheehan said Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and the Cleveland Clinic raised concerns and agreed this is a case of medical abuse.
Parker pleaded not guilty and asked for a low bond, WLWT said.
“My only living relatives are here. My fiancée, all of my friends, actually my ex-husband’s parents are also here in support today so I’m really not a flight risk. Everybody in my whole life is here,” Parker said.
Judge Michael Oster set her bond at $50,000.
The boy’s father, Michael Carpenter, said after court that the child had medical issues since birth and that all decisions about hospitalizations had been made at the direction of doctors. Parker, he said, is “a caring mother who wanted the best for her children.”
According to Law&Crime, Parker was ordered to have no contact with her children, who are in the custody of Butler County Children Services. She is due in court again on November 24.
