A Marion County woman is facing a child neglect charge after deputies said a malnourished 3-year-old child was found locked in a room in her house with several injuries.
On Thursday, May 9, deputies with the Marion County Sheriff's Department were assisting DHHR officers in Fairmont to do a check at Brittany Lippencott's home. An annomynous referral stated Lippencott, 28, was distributing controlled substances with children in her home, deputies said.
Upon arriving at the residence, deputies talked with Lippencott's mother, who said no one else was currently at the home. However, deputies said they saw Lippencott walking down a hallway inside the home and were aware that she had active warrants for her arrest. Deputies then went into the home and searched to see if anyone else was inside, according to a criminal complaint.
During the search, deputies discovered a three-year-old boy who appeared to be in poor health inside of a locked room. When deputies opened the door to the room the boy was found in, he was in just his underwear, according to court documents. Deputies said the boy appeared emaciated, pale and had apparent bruising on his face near his eyes and mouth.
The boy was then taken by West Virginia DHHR to Fairmont Regional Medical Center for a wellness check, deputies said. Upon visual inspection of the boy's condition, his ribcage was visible from the front and back due to emaciation, the criminal complaint stated. The boy's emaciation also caused him to have no formed buttock, but rather sagging skin, according to court documents. The three-year-old weighed 22.6 pounds and was two feet, eleven inches tall, the documents said.
Deputies also observed that the boy had a laceration on his lower section and that his genitals showed signs of trauma. Upon receipt of medical records via search warrant, a doctor noted a "penile trauma," and injuries to the boy's nose and lip area, deputies said. The doctor's differential diagnosis/assessment stated, "child neglect and potential sexual abuse/torture?" according to court documents.
On the same day, the boy was taken to Ruby Memorial Hospital, in Morgantown, for further treatment, deputies said. Due to the genital injuries, a sexual assault exam was completed, according to a criminal complaint. When asked about the injuries to his lip, the boy stated "[Lippencott] did it with pliers." The examination also noted that the boy was "emaciated" and "malnourished," according to court documents. The examination also noted abrasions to the boy's back, abdomen and coccyx. Circular scab wounds were also found on the victim's genitals, deputies said.
When asked about the injuries in his genital area, the boy stated "[Lippencott] hurt me with pliers," deputies said. The boy also stated that he has to "sit at the table and watch them eat" and that it's "not his turn," according to court documents.
Lippencott told deputies that the boy needed help and to go to the doctor, court documents stated. Lippencott also stated that the boy had not been to a doctor in a year and she had not sought treatment for his issues. Additionally, Lippencott told deputies that she would lock the boy in his room at night "a couple times," but usually during the day.
Lippencott has been charged with child neglect with serious bodily injury and gross child neglect creating a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury, according to court documents
UPDATE: Marion County woman pleads guilty to child neglect charges
FAIRMONT, W.Va. – A Marion County woman is facing a child neglect charge after deputies said a malnourished 3-year-old child was found locked in a room in her house with several injuries.
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