In a harrowing case from Bexar County, Texas, parents Amanda Mann, 31, and Dustin Lawrence, 30, were arrested for inflicting severe burns on their 1-year-old daughter and administering methamphetamine as a misguided form of pain relief. Sheriff Javier Salazar described the child's ordeal as "outright torture" during a news briefing acording to Fresno Bee.
The child sustained facial injuries and burns over her body after boiling liquid was spilled on her. Instead of seeking immediate medical attention, the parents applied burn ointment and injected her with meth, leading to further complications, including the skin peeling off with the bedsheets the following day.
The household, an RV filled with filth, posed a severe risk of infection and was home to several other children, one of whom, a 6-year-old boy, also tested positive for meth.
The children were removed from the home for their safety. The 1-year-old girl, who only weighed 18 pounds, and her siblings were said to have endured a "living hell."
Mann and Lawrence face multiple charges, including child endangerment and injury to a child resulting in serious bodily injury, with bonds set at $450,000.
The sheriff expressed a deep frustration with the situation, lamenting that there wasn't more they could charge the parents with, given the severity of the abuse.
He expressed a strong desire for the perpetrators to remain incarcerated for a significant time.
The community and authorities are left grappling with the aftermath of such a tragic event and the long-term impact it will have on the young victims.
