Inset: Emma Spencer (Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office). The Wisconsin apartment complex where Emma Spencer allegedly assaulted her young daughter and boyfriend (Google Maps).
A 17-year-old Wisconsin mother is accused of lashing out during a dispute over her polyamorous relationship, allegedly striking her 2-year-old daughter in the face while the child was playing with a teddy bear, according to authorities.
Emma Spencer, of Kenosha, is also accused of attacking her boyfriend during the same confrontation, which prosecutors say stemmed from tensions involving the couple’s “throuple” arrangement with another woman, according to a criminal complaint obtained by Law&Crime.
The complaint alleges Spencer became upset and said her boyfriend liked the other woman more than he liked her, adding that “no one loves her.” Her boyfriend allegedly tried to calm her down, telling her, “If I didn’t love you, why would I have a kid with you?” while pointing to their daughter. Prosecutors say Spencer then hit the child in the face with her palm, grabbed the girl by the face, pushed her down, and caused her to cry.
According to prosecutors, Spencer’s boyfriend confronted her on Tuesday, July 7, and asked why she had struck their child. Spencer allegedly responded that “she didn’t want to have a baby anymore and she never wanted a baby,” the complaint states.
Investigators say the confrontation then shifted toward the boyfriend. After the alleged assault on the child, Spencer reportedly climbed on top of him while he was on their bed and began “punching him repeatedly in the chest.” The other woman in the relationship, who allegedly witnessed both incidents, told investigators Spencer struck him about eight to 10 times before stopping, according to the complaint.
The complaint also describes an earlier incident in which Spencer allegedly punched her boyfriend in the groin and threw a can of Mountain Dew at him.
When police responded to the apartment shared by Spencer and her boyfriend, they spoke with the other woman, who said the three had been in a “throuple” for only three days and that she had recently moved in with them, according to the complaint.
Spencer and her boyfriend had been together for three years.
“The defendant had recently started dating [the female] approximately one week prior and brought her into the home three days ago for a three-way relationship, which was a mutual decision between the defendant and [the boyfriend],” the complaint explains. “The defendant began having conflicting feelings about the three-way relationship and wanted to take a break. She and [the boyfriend] had been arguing throughout the day about the relationship and their feelings.”
Spencer’s boyfriend told her that she “disregarded people’s feelings and mentally hurt people, which triggered her anger,” according to prosecutors. Spencer allegedly claimed she “blanked out” before attacking her boyfriend and child.
“The defendant described having mental health issues for years, specifically with her ‘grip on reality,'” the complaint says. “The defendant had started seeing a therapist two to three weeks prior, meeting once per week. The therapist wanted to prescribe medication, but the defendant’s mother refused to provide consent.”
When Spencer attacked her daughter, the little girl was “toddling around walking and playing with her teddy bear,” according to the complaint. Police reported a “small scratch” on the child’s nose that appeared old, but there were no other visible injuries.
In Wisconsin, 17-year-olds are automatically charged as adults regardless of the severity of the crime they allegedly committed. They are prosecuted in adult court and held at adult county jails.
Spencer has been charged by the Kenosha County District Attorney’s Office with felony child abuse, misdemeanor battery domestic abuse and disorderly conduct domestic abuse. She is being held at the Kenosha County Jail.
