An 11-year-old Texas boy was hospitalized after his stepfather beat him severely with a belt, then poured salt and vinegar into his open wounds.
According to a criminal complaint, the boy was found by police curled up in a fetal position on a sofa, with bloody bandages on his limbs, hips, buttocks, and back.
Police say the child had been beaten for months by his adoptive father, causing agony, pain and disfigurement. Police were alerted to the shocking abuse by teachers at Seabrook Intermediate School who hadn’t seen the child in weeks.
They asked police to conduct a welfare check on the boy.
The boy’s mother, Merilyn Parks, 35, and stepfather, Kerry Dean Parks, 50, have been charged with causing serious bodily injury to a minor.
Kerry Parks was taken into custody, but Mrs. Parks remains at large.
The child was taken to Texas Children’s Hospital, and then transferred to Shriner’s hospital, where he will receive plastic surgery for his disfiguring wounds.
The boy told police that his adoptive father, Kerry Parks, beat him with a leather belt at least once or twice a day for several months.
The abuse took place at the home he shared with his mother, Merilyn Parks, and baby sister.
Merilyn Parks told police she bought the bandages for the boy’s wounds. But she never attempted to stop the beatings or call the police. She said Kerry Parks would remove the old bandages, which caused the child pain. He would then apply the salt and vinegar before replacing the bandages.
The boy is with foster parents, while his baby sister has been placed with relatives.
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