A mother and father have been charged with child neglect after they allegedly forced their 11-year-old to give birth at home.
34-year-old Dustin Walker and 33-year-old Cherie Walker of Muskogee have been accused of failing to give adequate supervision or medical care for their daughter as she gave birth to a baby earlier this month.
Court documents state that the unidentified 11-year-old was 36 weeks pregnant Muskogee County Assistant District Attorney Janet Hutson said to the media that the parents had no idea she was pregnant until August 16, when she gave birth.
The 11-year-old, according to court documents, had not received any prenatal care and had not been to a doctor or medical professional in over a year.
The girl was taken to the hospital after she gave birth at home.
Muskogee County Assistant District Attorney told the media, “I was horror-stricken to find out it’s an 11-year-old little girl who’s given birth. And that she had no medical care, and she had no one to be with her.”
“This child is traumatized. She’s been through a horrific ordeal. I mean, not only has somebody gotten her pregnant, but she gave birth at home without medical assistance, and this will be her life for the rest of her life,” she went on.
Huston went on to talk about the home life of the young girl as well as her siblings. She talked about how the children might have been homeschooled instead of attending a traditional education system. The children have now been removed from their home.
Michelle, the 11-year-old’s grandmother that the events that had unfolded have turned ‘my daughter and my son-in-law a monster.’ She also shared that no one in the family knew that the child had been pregnant.
The parents are currently remanded in custody. Huston shared, “The guardians are currently in the Muskogee County Jail. They both have a $100,000 bond in place. Like I said, I do anticipate filing additional charges and amending that information shortly.”
Authorities are currently waiting on test results, which will reveal who the child’s father is. Huston has reminded the public to be vigilant about suspect child neglect to report it immediately.
She said, “I want people to know that there are resources available to reach out to law enforcement, the Department of Human Services, or the district attorney’s office when you see something that may be abuse or neglect.”
If you are concerned about the welfare of a child, contact the Childhelp or the USA National Child Abuse Hotline (1-800-4-A-CHILD) (1-800-422-4453) which operates 24 hours a day.
