July 18, 1997, a report on the local news became a plea from an accused child abuser, Corey Wheats, for leniency. Tearfully, the 24 year old man stated he hoped his daughter was some place that was safe, and that he didn't mean to hurt her. During this interview aired from the Tipton County jail in Indiana, he begged, saying that he didn't want to go to prison with all those kinds of men, with a charge like this. Then, he added, crying, "I love her to death."

The child is a 7 month old baby. She was hospitalized with injuries including 7 broken ribs, a concussion and a brain stem injury that she may never be able to recover from. The injuries were sustained during an episode in which the father squeezed the child so hard that it resulted in this damage.

The mother, Corina Wheats, a 21 year old woman was also arrested for failing to report the abuse when it occurred. The police allege that she was present and aware of the abuse.

Following the report, an announcer stated that this was a "classic" example of abuse involving young parents not able to cope with raising a child. Everyone involved in this report appeared to be sympathetic to the young parents' plight.

Has abuse has become so common place that we can now be persuaded to have sympathy for an abuser's actions? It should never be considered to be acceptable for a parent or anyone to injure a child so severely that they may never live a normal life. Are we so distant from a child's suffering that we, as a society, are expected to be sympathetic to the ones that harmed them?

Perhaps these parents do feel some genuine remorse, but that does the child little good now. If coping with the child had become a problem for the parents, there were other ways of dealing with it. This is a situation that could have been avoided if the parents had sought help. In not doing so, they placed the child's life in danger.

Where is the line of accountability drawn in cases of child abuse? This is a severe case and should in no way be considered "classic". This was a 7 month old little baby girl whose only offense was that she was crying. For this, she is now in a hospital suffering from injuries she may never overcome. This baby had no way of defending herself against an adult. The child is not even old enough to walk.

This case is merely an example of the abuse children suffer from every day. While all the people involved in this case may be suffering to a degree, no one is suffering as much as that tiny little girl. We cannot be expected to turn our sympathies toward a person who will cause a child such harm. In this, or any other case, it is the children who suffer the most. Accountability for abusing a child cannot be erased by drawing sympathy and pleading for leniency. This man may not want to go to jail for his actions, but neither did this child ask to be abused.

This attempt to shift the focus off the severity of child abuse is very frightening. If society can be convinced to feel sympathy for any child abuser, then children will be place in further danger. There is no excuse for hurting a child. There is help available in forms of parenting classes free or at little charge for parents in need. There are counseling programs that will take low income families free or for a nominal charge. To know that your presence or the presence of anyone in your home puts your children at risk and to do nothing, is unacceptable.

Children across this nation are suffering needlessly. If parents do not want to get help before injury to the child occurs, then those adults should pay the price. All too often, it is the children who pay the highest cost. As concerned citizens, such attempts to avoid prosecution should be addressed. Innocent children who are being victimized need to be considered above the abusers. Let our sympathies be strong, and rightfully placed. The children who are hurting need us to make sure this never happens to them again. In the case of this 7 month old little girl, she is still in the hospital fighting to survive the abuse she endured at the hands of the man who was supposed to take care or her, nurture her, love and protect her.

When love and abused become as confused as it is in this instance, there is a need to protect the child. The anger this man exhibited when the crying baby was harmed is a very frightening thing. To injure an infant this severely is unthinkable, yet this man pleads for leniency. He showed no leniency with his crying child that day, yet his tears are supposed to move our hearts to pity him now. It is not acceptable to expect society to overlook a hurting child and turn our sympathies toward the man who nearly killed her for crying. His tears are not payment enough for his actions.

If his plea for leniency is heard, if he generates the sympathy and support he is seeking, this man may very well be released and the child ultimately returned to his care. Should that happen, there is a good chance that the next time he may very well, "love her to death".

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