Left: Savannah Cox. Right: Shane Moore (Rome Police Department).
A mom and dad in Georgia are facing child cruelty charges nearly a year after authorities discovered their 6-week-old daughter had 29 broken bones throughout her body.
Police in Rome, located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains some 70 miles northwest of Atlanta, arrested Savannah Carol-Louise Cox and Shane Avery Moore last week. According to a police report obtained by Atlanta Fox affiliate WAGA and ABC affiliate WSB, Cox and her mother took the baby to Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center on Feb. 7. The hospital called cops as the baby was reportedly suffering from a broken femur and bruises on her face. Further tests reportedly showed the infant had 29 fractures, including ribs, legs and arms.
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Nurses later told detectives that Cox and her mother kept changing their story about how the injuries occurred.
First, they allegedly said the girl suffered a fall. Then they started asking hospital staff if the injuries could have been from someone “dropping her,” according to reports. Finally, Cox said she had taken the girl to a doctor’s appointment earlier that day and allegedly suggested the broken leg could have happened there. She claimed she noticed her daughter’s injuries a few hours after the appointment and decided to take her to the hospital.
Doctors, however, determined the injuries were in various stages of healing. Cops and the Department of Family and Children’s Services took custody of the girl and her sister. Cox, her parents and Moore lived together in the home with the two children when the injuries allegedly occurred. After about a year of investigating, police arrested Cox and Moore on Thursday.
In addition to child cruelty, they are also facing an aggravated battery charge. It appears the couple has since bonded out of the Floyd County Jail. Officials did not provide an update as to the status of the injured child.
Editor’s note: The age of the victim has been corrected.
