PORTLAND, Ind. — An Indiana woman is accused of fatally beating her 5-year-old son after “punishing” the child by withholding food for days at a time.
Chelsea Lanett Crossland, 27, of Portland, was charged on Wednesday with felony counts of murder and neglect of a dependent causing death, WANE-TV reported.
Jay County prosecutors accused Crossland of beating Christian Crossland so severely that he had no chance to survive, according to court documents.
Court documents stated that police were called to Chelsea Crossland’s home on March 24 after she reported her son fell and was unresponsive, WXIN-TV reported. Investigators at the scene stated that the boy was severely malnourished and had numerous bruises on his body and injuries to his face, according to the television station.
Portland police said they found the boy wearing only a diaper, the Star-Press of Muncie reported.
An autopsy attended by investigators revealed injuries consistent with a beating, WANE reported. The autopsy also found that Christian Crossland was so malnourished that he “failed to thrive,” according to court documents.
A girl who lived at the home told investigators that Chelsea Crossland beat, spanked and choked her son with her hands and other objects, WANE reported. The girl added that Chelsea Crossland routinely punished her son by withholding food from him, sometimes for days at a time.
The boy’s father told investigators that Chelsea Crossland previously said that she wished her son was dead, according to court documents.
Chelsea Crossland was also charged with child molesting in a separate incident involving a 9-year-old, according to WTHR-TV.
Chelsea Crossland remains in the Jay County Jail, according to online booking records.