Woman Accused Of Beating Disabled Child: Report

TAYLORSVILLE, GA — A Bartow County woman was arrested late Sunday and charged with assaulting her disabled daughter, according to an incident report released by the Sheriff's Office. A deputy was dispatched to a home on Gordon Road SW in Taylorsville and was met by the woman, later identified as Julia Betty Denise Collins, running from the home screaming and waving her hands in the air.

It appeared Collins was under the influence of both drugs and alcohol, the deputy wrote in the report. Shortly after arriving on the scene, the "yelling and irate" woman charged towards the deputy and his partner, so they quickly detained her inside a patrol vehicle to get an idea of what was happening inside the home.

Once going inside, one of the deputies found a child lying on the bed. The girl, who could not move because she suffered from muscular dystrophy, told the deputy she was "lying in her bed crying because her mother, Julia, was yelling at her father," the report adds.

She also said her mother allegedly approached the bed and began hitting her in the face with an open hand. After allegedly striking her daughter, the report states Collins ran outside, but returned a short time later, removed a blanket covering her daughter and begin hitting her all over her body.

"All she could do was plead with Julia to stop hitting her, as she can not move due to her paralysis," the deputy added in the report (For more news like this, find your local Patch here. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here).

Another witness said he received a call from the home asking for help and he arrived at the residence to find Collins running in the driveway with a broom handle, the report goes on to state. The man told police Collins allegedly took a swipe at him with the handle and ran back inside where he could hear Collins striking someone.

The child had red marks on both sides of her face and along her back, the report alleges. However, the family and others at the scene refused medical treatment, noting they would call the home health nurse.

Collins was charged with felony cruelty to children in the first degree under the Family Violence Act and battery FVA and simple assault. Bartow County Jail records note the battery and simple assault charges are misdemeanors. She was booked into and released Monday, March 19 from the facility.

Photo: Julia Betty Denise Collins. Credit: Bartow County Jail