Mother to surrender in videotaped beating of girl

Associated Press ^ | September 21, 2002 | Associated Press Staff

[MeekOneGOP]

Mother to surrender in videotaped beating of girl

09/21/2002

Associated Press

MISHAWAKA, Ind. - A woman seen on a department store security tape punching her 4-year-old daughter plans to surrender Saturday, her attorney said Friday night.

Police have been searching for Madelyne Gorman Toogood since Sept. 13, when a camera in a department store parking lot videotaped her punching and shaking her 4-year-old daughter.

The attorney, Stephen Rosen, said Ms. Toogood is on her way to Chicago and will surrender. She is charged with felony battery to a child.

Indiana police took the search nationwide Wednesday when they released the tape. "We want to get the girl the medical attention she needs," Police Chief Anthony A. Hazen said. "We want to get her to an emergency room and let them examine her."

Ms. Toogood is also wanted in Texas on at least two warrants. Fort Worth police said one warrant involves a shoplifting charge in March. Authorities in White Settlement, a Fort Worth suburb, issued an arrest warrant on an unspecified Class C misdemeanor.

Ms. Gorman's sister, 31-year-old Margaret Daley, who authorities say was present at the time of the incident, was arrested and charged with failure to report child abuse.

Police received more than 1,000 calls about the video, which was first aired Wednesday night.

Staff writer Laurie Fox contributed to this report.

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Online at: http://www.dallasnews.com/latestnews/stories/092102dnnatbeating.86c.html

[ican'tbelieveit]

but = by

[cajungirl]

I dunno. It is against the law in most states to hit a child about the head and face. Now I watched the video and saw her sort of slapping around and the kid just popped right up into her car seat, swinging her legs. Then she inexplicably reached over, the video is unclear, and looked like she was pulling her hair. I didn't see fists but just a storm of slapping. Clearly it was wrong but this didn't look like fists pummeling a child. I would never hit a kid that way and surely this needs to be looked at. But a monster? Take the child away? I dunno. It is interesting that she was dutifully putting her in the proper car seat in the back of the car so she isn't a total loser. And to call heer a white trash who..,,,well that is not established. And it gives white trash ho's a bad name!!!! This woman clearly doesn't know how to treat a child, is like a kid herself but I reserve judgement on whether she is a monster. Every parent knows that you come close to the edge with kids,,she went over the edge. And a wal-mart parking lot is just the place to test anyone's patience. I have seen this kiind of thing in grocery stores and cringe. Not this bad, but close to it.

[Kevin Curry]

I believe I suffered spankings a lot worse that what 'millions of outraged Americans' saw on TV last night and they were to my own good, . . .

I don't disbelieve you that you were viciously beaten as a child. But to 'your own good'? I don't know enough about you to make a conclusive judgment, but I would strongly suspect you are a severely screwed-up adult.

Ask my children, any of them, about physical spankings and they will give you confused look. My wife and I have never resorted to spankings (beyond one or two quick open-handed swats on a well-diapered behind, and then no more than two or three times in the entire childhood of each of them) or physical beatings to discipline our kids. They have turned out wonderfully well-adjusted, cheerful, obedient, and self-disciplined.

I pity you. More than this, I pity your children and your grandchildren.

[MeekOneGOP]

And can you believe her lawyer is claiming that the little girl doesn't have a mark at all on her

How long does it take bruises to heal? The incident happened Monday, six days ago.

Yeah, 6-8 days ago. From what I saw, the kid's marks would still be there, I'm sure.....

[JZoback]

Cute, but not relevant.

[Rightly Biased]

All the outrage over this is misdirected. Doesn't some of this blame belong in the courts. If a woman has the right to "choose" whether to have her unborn child destroyed or spared. Does it not cheapen the childs life after he or she is born. Especially to someone who may not have wanted a baby anyway.


I do belive that you have "hit" the nail on the head with that one, we don't need to rant on about abortion here but I have to agree with your wisdom.


Regards

[paltz]

While what this mother did to her child was inexcusable and should be punished, there's something awfully Orwellian to this entire scenario. When I saw first saw a news anchor on FNC report this story, it gave me the chills and reminded me of 1984's "Big Brother" sending their troops out on one person. The story just seemed too local to be a national situation.

[JZoback]

Sounds to me like you don't know anything about either dogs or kids

Don't know squat about dogs, but kids, I'm pretty well rounded.

[Kevin Curry]

Also, if this were a dog being beaten viciously in public, we would have an outpouring of money and loving homes for that dog.

You know, you're right.

[MeekOneGOP]

And, seriously, could someone explain 'white trash'?

Oh, for heaven's sakes, here .....

white trash

noun

a taboo term for a Caucasian person or group of Caucasian people considered as possessing the stereotypical characteristics of members of a lower-income group in society ( slang taboo )

[Kevin Curry]

I am not condoning the way she did it. She needs to be taught the right way to spank a child, for bad behavior.

Taught by whom?

And would you force her to submit to the teaching? How?

And if she told you (or your the teacher you have appointed) to take a flying leap off a short pier, what would you do?

If, free of the threat of state sanction, she continued to "discipline" her child--publically, privately, whatever, whereever--in this manner, what then?

Let's say she is your neighbor, and she is so enraged by your buttinski attitude (suggesting she needs to be taught the "correct" way to discipline her child), that she makes apoint of violently beating the child in your presence whenever you are near physically. What do you do then?

[proud American in Canada]

"Well, my prediction was right after only 5 posts. The next type of post I await is the "My father shot me in the face with a bazooka every night, and it was GOOD FOR ME!" "

LOL, Ctid...

The woman was not "disciplining" her daughter. She wasn't spanking her daughter.
She was in an out-of-control rage and was beating a defenseless child.
Although I agree that the state interferes too much on occasion, interfering here would NOT be too much.
It just might save that girl's life.

[southern rock]

Explain 'white trash' please????

Poeple like to use it simply because it is the last safe racial slur. Around here, it usually refers to anybody who doesn't live, look, dress, act, parent, behave or think EXACTLY like the perfect individual casting the dispersion.

[txrangerette]

You said a lot but not directly to my
point. We can discuss what the woman
did or didn't do, & what should be the
law's response--sure we can. But it is
not at all clear that this had a thing
to do with DISCIPLINE. We don't know
that AT ALL, yet. Until we know, I for
one will not use that word to discuss
what the woman did to the child. You
are free to ASSUME the child needed to
be disciplined. I don't assume it. A
warped, sadistic & out-of-control type
person can attack for reasons having
nothing to do with discipline. Happens
every day...

[Paul Atreides]

You are an idiot.

[southern rock]

Terrible situation the courts will now be faced with. Do they ruin the kid's life by giving her back to her mother or ruin her life by taking her away?

And the courts have the authority to make this decision how??

[avenir]

Well, my prediction was right after only 5 posts. The next type of post I await is the "My father shot me in the face with a bazooka every night, and it was GOOD FOR ME!"

LOL!!! Exactly what I was thinking. "May I have another, sir?"

Maybe I missed something in VRWC's post. I'm a firm believer in corporal punishment—but how can you confuse spanking with what this woman did? Perhaps he's reacting to the lack of discipline all around us, which upsets me too.

[mystery-ak]

To equate this beating with discipline is ludricous....I can't believe some of these post....this was a BABY!