ST. PAUL, Minn. - A St. Paul mother is charged with malicious punishment of a child after allegedly biting her 5-year-old son.
A criminal complaint issued in Ramsey County District Court says police officers were called to Como Park Elementary School on a report of child abuse. A counselor told them a student was claiming that his mother, 32-year-old Samira Omer Amba, had bitten him.
School officials observed a large bruise on the child's left arm measuring approximately 2 ½ inches. The boy told them that he and his brother would not go to sleep, and his mom got angry with him and bit him on the left arm.
The child was seen at Midwest Children's Resource Center where doctors conducted a physical examination and concluded that the large circular pattern bruise on the boy's upper left arm was consistent with an adult bite mark.
When questioned Amba first told investigators that she had pinched her child on the arm. Amba denied biting the boy but when told that police wanted to take a bite sample by having her put her teeth in a styrofoam cup, Amba changed her story.
The suspct told investigators that she bit her son because he had bit his younger sister and Amba wanted him to see how it felt. The suspect was asked if the bite on the boy's younger sister had left marks on her similar to those left on his arm.
Amba said they did not.
Malicious punishment of a child is a gross misdemeanor carrying a potential sentence of one year in prison and a $3,000 fine.
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