Sheila Mann (Madison County Detention Center).
A Kentucky woman was recently arrested for a vast array of child abuse-related offenses that included keeping her 10-year-old daughter locked in a dog cage for days on end, police say.
Sheila Mann, 31, stands accused of one count each of strangulation in the first degree, first-degree criminal abuse involving a child 12 years or under, first-degree unlawful imprisonment, first-degree wanton endangerment, third-degree terroristic threatening, and failure to appear, according to Madison County Detention Center records.
Police allege the abuse in Madison County occurred during several months spanning Jan. 1 through early March of this year.
“The child, who is under the age of 12, had disclosed to investigators that Ms. Mann had locked her inside a dog kennel-type cage, for two to three days at a time, and would only allow her to exit that cage just to use the bathroom,” Richmond Police Chief Rodney Richardson told Lexington-based CBS and The CW affiliate WKYT.
The defendant allegedly used her hands to briefly strangle her daughter around the neck, the girl told police during a forensic investigation. The girl also said Mann threatened to slit her throat, the TV station reported, citing a criminal complaint warrant.
After the alleged strangling incident, the girl said she had trouble breathing and her throat hurt for several days, police say.
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Mann is also accused of throwing the girl face down onto their kitchen floor and sitting on the child’s back, according to a court document obtained by Danville-based Fox affiliate WDKY.
This alleged abuse would continue on for several minutes until the mother tied the girl’s hands together behind her back with twine, police say.
Twine was also used to keep the dog cage locked on occasions, the girl told police. The alleged victim said she attempted to escape on various occasions but was never able to do so.
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The accused mother appears intent on telling her side of the story.
During an interview with WKYT, Mann denied the allegations against her and said the claims come from a misunderstanding about a situation where she, herself, was actually the victim. The defendant said the incident or incidents occurred in nearby Georgetown — a medium-sized city roughly 40 miles northwest of Richmond.
“No, that’s not true. That’s not true at all,” Mann told the TV station during a jailhouse interview — specifically denying the allegation about the dog cage confinement regime. “I have never done anything like that. I have always had a job with caretaking.”
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Law&Crime filed an open records request for all files related to this case. The Richmond Police Department says it is currently working on completing that request.
Mann’s daughter is now being cared for by foster parents, police say.
Mann was booked on Monday and is being held on $50,000 bond. The defendant is next slated to appear in court for her arraignment on Wednesday morning, Madison County records show.
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