Published On: September 24th, 2019Categories: Uncategorized

Recognizing signs of physical child abuse

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) statistics show that more than 700,000 children are referred to child protective agencies as a result of abuse or neglect in the U.S. each year.

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) statistics show that more than 700,000 children are referred to child protective agencies as a result of abuse or neglect in the U.S. each year.

A 39-year-old Sarasota woman is behind bars and a 43-year-old man is on the run after the man’s daughter reported how the couple had been abusing her, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office.

The 16-year-old girl was kept “caged” in her room for more than a year, according to the sheriff’s office, because the father and his girlfriend believed she would bring boys home.

Jessica Brambilla is charged with aggravated child abuse and deputies have issued a warrant for her boyfriend and the father of the girl, Dwight Bainbridge, 43.

According to a sheriff’s office report, the teen girl was locked in her room for more than a year, was sexually abused and forced to urinate in a bucket in her room.

The girl reported the abuse to school officials last week. Deputies who went to her home in the 8400 block of Webber Street reported finding a padlocked room with very little bedding and a bucket full of urine.

The girl told authorities she was told she was being locked in her bedroom because Brambilla and Bainbridge believed she would bring boys to the home, deputies say.

According to the report, the girl was allowed out of her room twice a day to use the bathroom, but after she urinated once on the floor, she was given a bucket.

Deputies say she was fed twice a day and her meals consisted of plain oatmeal, two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, two cups of water and multivitamins.

Prior to reporting the abuse to school officials, the 16-year-old was home schooled for 18 months, which was often taken away from her as punishment. At one point, she went an entire four months without school, according to deputies.

Deputies say the abuse was getting worse as the teen was confined 24 hours a day to her room and she was only allowed out once a week to bathe.

According to the report, Bambilla told deputies, “Caging her was Dwight’s idea.” She added she did not feel like there was a problem with how they were treating the child.

Breaking News/Real Time Reporter Mark Young began his career in 1996 and has been with the Bradenton Herald since 2014. He has won more than a dozen awards over the years, including the coveted Lucy Morgan Award for In-Depth Reporting from the Florida Press Club and for beat reporting from the Society for Professional Journalists to name a few. His reporting experience is as diverse as the communities he covers.

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