MACKANEY SMITH - 6 yo/ 19 pounds - Beckley (SE of Charleston) WV

Two Raleigh County women have been arrested after a 6-year-old girl in their care was brought to the hospital weighing only 19 pounds.
Her mother, Sabrina Smith, 41, of Beckley, brought the young girl to Raleigh General Hospital in early September after she became unresponsive.According to Beckley Police Chief of Detectives Jeff Shumate, the girl's core temperature had dropped to 80 and her blood sugar was listed at 2. Normal blood sugar levels range from 80 to 120. She weighed only 19 pounds, and nurses at the hospital had to use an infant scale to weigh the child, according to Shumate. Smith and Amanda Wills, 30, Smith's roommate in Beckley, were arrested Tuesday and charged with three felony counts of child abuse with substantial injury; child neglect with substantial risk of injury or death; and attempted murder of a child by parent, guardian or custodian by refusal or failure to supply necessities.Following the initial hospital visit in September, the girl was soon transferred to Charleston Area Medical Center's Women and Children's hospital, where a pediatric specialist determined her condition was caused by serious malnutrition and neglect, Shumate said. After police spoke to witnesses and the defendants, they learned that the girl was allegedly placed in a child seat at times and was held in place with zip ties. The padding from the seat was removed and a pressure sore developed on the girl's lower back and upper buttocks, Shumate said. She was also allegedly forced to sleep sitting up in the seat for nine to 10 hours at a time, he said.
Food was also used for punishment and was regularly restricted, Shumate said. Allegedly, when the girl was fed, it was only food she disliked.
Police believe the abuse had been going on for months, even before Smith moved from Tennessee to Beckley last December. They also believe that while she was in Tennessee, she was often locked in a utility room for hours at a time, with no blankets, food and water. The victim is one of six children in the home. All of them have been placed in foster care, Shumate said. Police are unsure why the young girl was targeted, but she was "definitely isolated from the other family members," Shumate said. The young girl has since been released and has gained a substantial amount of weight. "She is doing a lot better," he said. Smith and Wills are each being held at the Southern Regional Jail on a $500,000 bond.

Two Beckley women were behind bars Monday after being arrested by Beckley Police following a joint investigation by Beckley Police and Child Protective Services.

Beckley Chief of Detectives Capt. Jeff Shumate said police received a complaint for a criminal investigation from CPS on Oct. 13 and, after multiple interviews and execution of a search warrant, two arrests were made.

Sabrina Smith, 41, and Amanda Wills, 30, both of Berkeley Street, were arrested Tuesday; each is charged with three felony counts of child abuse with substantial injury; child neglect with substantial risk of death; and attempted murder of a child by parent, guardian or custodian by refusal or failure to supply necessities.

Smith is the biological mother of the 6-year-old girl involved. Wills is a roommate in the home and serves as a guardian to the child, according to authorities.

Shumate explains that the girl was taken to Raleigh General Hospital in an unresponsive state a few weeks ago. He said the 6-year-old weighed around 18 pounds, her core body temperature had dropped to 80 degrees and her blood sugar was only 2. Normal readings are between 80 and 120.

Shumate said the child was so malnourished, she was weighed on an infant scale upon arrival to the hospital.

“She was in a very critical state when she arrived at Raleigh General,” Shumate said. “After they were able to stabilize her condition, she was then airlifted by HeathNet to Charleston Area Medical Center.”

The girl has since been released and has been placed in another home by CPS.

Shumate added that officials have reason to believe the girl, who lived at home with five brothers and sisters, was singled out by abusers, but said he is not ready to release further information. He said evidence shows her siblings may have participated in the abuse.

He said the victim sustained severe bruising over a large portion of her body as well as various injuries. He explained that the suspects admitted to restraining the child in a car seat — its fabric padding had been removed — for long periods of time using zip ties to strap her in.

Shumate said suspects told police it was to keep her out of kitchen cabinets. Police believe the car seat was also used as a form of punishment and said the girl was strapped in and forced to sleep in an upright position. The girl sustained sores from the pressure.

The girl’s father lives in Tennessee, where Smith and the six children lived before moving to Beckley a short time ago. Shumate said he believes the abuse has taken place over a period of time, including the time the family lived out-of-state. Law enforcement in Tennessee has been contacted to look into the case.

Medical professionals determined the cause for the girl’s state was malnutrition due to neglect. Det. Shumate said it was the most severe child abuse case he’s seen in 20 years. Police say the girl had not started school.

Custody of all six children in the home has been taken by CPS and police say they will be placed with foster families.

Shumate stresses the importance of alerting the police in these types of cases.

“Law enforcement and Child Protective Services are very dependent on people in the community, as well as teachers, to contact cops when abuse is suspected,” he said. “People may worry they are reporting things that are unimportant, but that is our job to investigate and to make that determination.”

Both women have been remanded to Southern Regional Jail on $500,000 bond each.

Hospitalized several days due to injuries suffered from alleged child neglect and abuse, 6-year-old Mackaney now is on the road to recovery, thanks to community support.

Beckley police Capt. Jeff Shumate said Friday that Mackaney has made a “drastic recovery,” her weight increasing from 19 pounds when she was first admitted to the hospital to 32 pounds.

Police received the original complaint for a criminal investigation from Child Protective Services on Oct. 13. The child’s mother, Sabrina Smith, 41, and Amanda Wells, 30, who also lived in the Berkeley Street home, were arrested Monday.

They are charged with child abuse with substantial injury, child neglect with substantial risk of death and attempted murder of a child by parent, guardian or custodian by refusal or failure to supply necessities.

The child was released from the hospital last week and is able to communicate and interact with people. However, Shumate says Mackaney is still is unable to walk on her own.

“She seems to be in high spirits and she’s just such a joy to be around,” Shumate said. “It’s refreshing to see the response from the community. People have offered everything from setting up trust funds to donating clothing to putting her on the prayer list at church.”

Mackaney was taken to Raleigh General Hospital in an “unresponsive state.” Shumate said her core body temperature was 80 degrees and her blood sugar was only 2.

She also sustained injuries all over her body and Shumate said she was zip-tied to a car seat, without fabric padding, during the night.

Both Smith and Wills were remanded to Southern Regional Jail on $500,000 bond. Smith has since been released, but Wills remained in custody Friday.

Shumate says he is glad the little girl is on the road to recovery and thankful for community support.

“In cases like these, it’s good to see such a response and it’s good to see her doing better,” he said. “I think it shows how the community pulls together for the common good.”