Afton woman sentenced to 15 years for beating her toddler

JAY, Okla. – An Afton woman pleaded guilty to child neglect involving the beating of her daughter that left the girl’s eye swollen shut.

Tabetha Townsend, 26, and Chandler Blackwell, 26, were charged in Jan. 2020 in Delaware County District Court with child neglect for the beating of Townsend’s 21-month-old daughter.

 

A judge sentenced Townsend to 15 years in prison with the provision that part of her sentence could be suspended if she completes a substance abuse treatment program.  

According to the arrest affidavit, the toddler’s head and face were swollen causing “her left ear to be downward placed and her left eye to be swollen shut.”  

Officers also noted the child had bruising on her eye and right forehead, along with several small, faint, blue bruises on her foot, thighs and upper back.

The child was admitted to St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa.

The judge also gave Blackwell a 15-year sentence, with similar provisions – that the balance of his sentence be suspended after he completes a residential treatment plan, obtain his GED, and completes parenting classes. 

The Oklahoma Department of Corrections website shows Blackwell remains incarcerated.  

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