Mom gave child forehead floggings with belt, ravaged their legs with kicks and punches while also strangling them until the kid finally told a teacher

Candice McClure (Cherokee County Sheriff's Office).

A Georgia mother is headed to prison after her child told an elementary school teacher how she beat their legs and choked them, according to prosecutors. The child was also repeatedly flogged on the forehead with a belt.

"The schoolteachers are the heroes in this case," said Cherokee County District Attorney Susan K. Treadaway in a statement announcing Candice McClure's prison sentence. "They recognized the signs of abuse and created a safe place for the child to come forward," Treadaway said.

McClure, 35, of Lenox, was sentenced to 40 years in prison after a jury found her guilty of aggravated assault and cruelty to children following a four-day trial, according to the DA's office. McClure had been abusing "the same child" for nearly 10 years, the DA's office said Friday, noting she was also arrested in 2016 on child cruelty charges.

Her conviction stems from a report the child gave to a teacher in 2023 and a Child Services investigation that ultimately uncovered the abuse.

"A Cherokee County elementary school teacher reported child abuse concerns involving a student in her class," the DA's office said. "The student had disclosed to the teacher that McClure had kicked and punched the child's legs, and 'choked' the child with her hands. The teacher's report prompted the Division of Family & Children Services (DFCS) and Canton Police Department to open a child abuse investigation involving McClure."

DFCS workers made an unannounced visit to McClure's home after the investigation was launched and a DFCS employee photographed bruising on the child's leg and a "patterned injury on the child's forehead."

"The child was transported to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, where medical providers documented significant bruising on the legs, as well as a patterned injury on the forehead consistent with being struck by a belt," the DA's office explained.

The child later participated in a forensic interview, during which the child provided additional information. "The family was new to Cherokee County, and we believe the abuse had been ongoing before the family arrived," the DA's office said.

McClure's indictment, which was viewed by Law&Crime, says she used her hands to strangle her child "by applying pressure to the neck and throat." It also says she "maliciously" caused "cruel and excessive physical and mental pain" by strangling the child and striking them repeatedly on their legs.

During the trial, jurors heard testimony from a dozen witnesses, including the victim, other family members, law enforcement, medical providers, child advocacy experts, DFCS personnel, and Cherokee County School District personnel. Prosecutors introduced 20 exhibits, including a recorded forensic interview of the child, photographs of the victim's injuries, and documentation from school personnel that helped convict McClure.

The jury deliberated for just two and a half hours before returning its verdict.

"At trial and during sentencing, the state referenced the defendant's prior difficulties, including medical evidence and photographs documenting injuries to the same child in another county in 2016," the DA's office recounted. "The child was 4 years old at that time."

News reports published by The Valdosta Daily Times and Thomasville Times-Enterprise in 2016 describe how McClure's child was taken to a medical center two different times that year with "unexplainable" bruises and scrapes covering their body "from head to toe."

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The child delivered a victim impact statement at McClure's sentencing last week, accompanied by an adoptive parent, a victim advocate, and their service dog Parker "who provided comfort and support," according to the DA's office.

"The child expressed appreciation for being 'heard' by the jury and told the defendant that no one deserves to be treated in that manner," the office said. "Judge Wallace then acknowledged the child's trauma on the record before imposing the maximum sentence allowed under Georgia law."

Treadaway described the child's trauma and abuse as "heartbreaking" in her statement announcing McClure's sentence.

"Instead of protecting her own child, the defendant repeatedly inflicted abuse that caused lasting harm," Treadaway said. "This conviction and sentence send a clear message that Cherokee County will not tolerate the abuse of children and will hold offenders accountable to the fullest extent of the law."