A child reported to the authorities that a woman used a paddle named the “attitude adjuster” to hit him and also kicked him in a sensitive area. Courtney Crites, 32, was taken into custody in West Virginia after one of the five children living with her alleged that she left him with bruises on his back, shoulder, and chest. The child claimed that the woman subjected him to various forms of harm, such as leaving him outside in cold weather and physically assaulting him.
Following a report of possible child abuse on January 1, police conducted interviews with the children at the residence where Crites lived with her boyfriend. The children’s statements were documented by a child advocacy center and shared with law enforcement officials.
Subsequently, Crites was arrested and charged with three counts of felony child abuse. Police records indicated that the boy recounted incidents where Crites kicked, hit, and yelled at him. The child also mentioned that Crites used the paddle, which he described as a two-foot-long, two-by-four-inch object that she referred to as the “attitude adjuster.”
The child further alleged that Crites once forced him outside in cold weather before allowing him back inside and striking him with the paddle until it broke. The boy expressed fear when the paddle broke during the assault. He described sustaining bruises on his shoulder, chest, and back that lasted for several months and mentioned that Crites would kick him when she was angry.
Authorities did not disclose the exact relationship between Crites and the child. Crites is currently held at Tygart Valley Regional Jail in West Virginia on a $100,000 bond. This incident comes after another case where a mother admitted to killing her seven-year-old son, despite the child’s warnings to his grandmothers and social services about his mother’s intentions.