Background: The administration building of the Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office in Orangeburg, South Carolina (Google Maps). Inset: Chiquitta Dawkins (Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office).
A mother in South Carolina was arrested after her 12-year-old daughter was found severely underweight, in need of dental care and with an infection in her hip, authorities say.
Chiquitta Dawkins, 43, has been charged with unlawful conduct toward a child, the Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office announced on Thursday. The investigation stretches back months.
Dawkins lived with her daughter in Bowman, South Carolina, until July, when they moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, according to an incident report and arrest warrant obtained by The Times and Democrat. On Oct. 10, the child's father met with a sheriff's deputy in Bowman to share concerns about his daughter being neglected.
The man said that on Aug. 22, his daughter came into his care, and he noticed that she was limping and looked small for her age. He said that he took her to see a pediatrician, and the doctor found that the girl was 20 pounds underweight for her age.
The pediatrician reportedly diagnosed her with malnutrition, and an X-ray showed that she had low bone density and underdeveloped bones related to her not having enough vitamin D and calcium. The father also said his daughter had an infection in her left hip.
The Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office said the girl had "severe malnutrition" and weighed 47 pounds; according to the Centers for Disease Control, the average weight for a 12-year-old girl in the U.S. ranges from 68 to 136 pounds. The girl also "had frail bones," and there was no record of her going to school since kindergarten, authorities said.
In the ensuing weeks, authorities continued to investigate, and they apparently found other troubling signs. According to the newspaper, the girl had not had dental work done for several years and she had several untreated cavities; she was also allegedly behind on recommended vaccinations.
The girl reportedly ate a vegetarian diet of "quinoa and beans."
Court records state that the girl was admitted to a hospital at the pediatrician's request, and she stayed there for 13 days, during which she was fed through a feeding tube. An investigator determined that the girl was five years behind in her development and stood 4 feet, 3 inches tall.
During the investigation, Dawkins, a licensed independent social worker of 18 years, "avoided all calls" from law enforcement, authorities said. She was eventually arrested and jailed on a $35,000 bond.
"There are no reasonable people on this planet who could possibly think this is fine," Orangeburg County Sheriff Leroy Ravenell said. "Leaving a child to become this sick, this malnourished is the utmost in despicable."