Two Mississippi residents were arrested in Franklnton recently, with both being charged with cruelty to a juvenile.
The cruelty incident occurred on July 16 near downtown Franklinton.
Franklinton police officers stopped to check on a car that was stopped in the roadway.
As they approached the vehicle, the officers saw the driver allegedly striking a small child in the face. Worse, the child’s mother was also in the car and police reported that she did nothing to prevent the alleged assault on her child.
Three other children were in the car and were reportedly unharmed.
The injured child suffered significant wounds to the face, and an ambulance was called. The child was taken to Riverside Medical Center by ambulance.
The injured child and the other three children in the car were later released to an aunt.
Arrested was the driver, Timmy Renea Pounds, 27, of Osyka, Mississippi, charged with Cruelty to a Juvenile and four counts of Domestic Child Endangerment.
The mother, Sylvia Varela, 51, also of Osyka. was charged with Cruelty to a Juvenile.
Varela was booked into the Washington Parish Jail that same day, July 16, and was released on a $10,000 bond the next day.
Pounds was booked into the jail and was released on a $30,000 bond on July 23.
The case continues to be investigated and the charges have been referred to the District Attorney’s Office.
