A young girl in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, is finally experiencing freedom after enduring horrific abuse at the hands of her mother and grandmother.
The charges against Amanda Lynn Gregorio, 35, and Stacey Ann Louder, 52, include aggravated assault of a child under 13, conspiracy, unlawful restraint, false imprisonment, endangering the welfare of a child, recklessly endangering another person, simple assault, and tampering with evidence.
Discovery of Abuse and Medical Intervention
The abuse came to light on September 4, 2024, when the 12-year-old girl was admitted to the hospital with seizure-like symptoms. Upon examination, hospital staff discovered severe malnutrition, bruises, abrasions, and signs of restraint on the child’s body.
Weighing only 50 pounds, the girl was in the 0.01 percentile for a healthy child her age, raising alarms about her condition.
Doctors also found that the child had a history of fractures and broken bones dating back to 2017. A further investigation revealed that the girl had been overmedicated with Benadryl and melatonin by her mother, Gregorio, prior to the seizure-like incident.
The hospital staff promptly contacted Children & Youth services, leading to the girl’s removal from the home a week later.
Details of the Abuse
According to the investigation, the girl told detectives in Exeter that she was often restrained to a bed by her hands, feet, legs, and chest, even while sleeping. She described being confined to the bed for such long periods that she was forced to urinate and defecate in it.
Gregorio allegedly fed the girl cat food and restrained her for weeks at a time. The girl also revealed that her mother blamed Louder, her grandmother, for making her carry out these abusive acts.
Detectives discovered a surveillance camera in the girl’s room, which was used to monitor her and ensure she did not escape the restraints. Shockingly, Gregorio also allegedly shared pictures of her daughter bound to the bed, with one of the images described as resembling “Jesus on the cross,” according to legal filings.
The Girl’s Struggles at School
The abuse extended to the girl’s schooling as well. She had previously attended a traditional school, but after a school official noticed a black eye in February 2023, the girl’s story began to change.
Initially, she claimed her mother had hit her for scratching herself but later stated that she had walked into a wall. By the end of the month, the child was removed from school and enrolled in an online school, likely to avoid further scrutiny.
Legal Action and Response
Luzerne County District Attorney Sam Sanguedolce condemned the actions of Gregorio and Louder, stating that the abuse “offends the sense of decency of every mother, grandmother, and otherwise respectable person imaginable.” He added that the very individuals the child trusted to keep her safe were, in fact, her abusers.
The charges against Gregorio and Louder are a chilling reminder of the horrors some children face at the hands of those who should protect them. The prosecution has vowed to seek the maximum penalties allowed by law in order to ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable for their actions.
Both women are currently being held on $125,000 bail, with their preliminary hearing scheduled for May 6, 2025.