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Last updated on Tuesday, October 30, 2012
(INDIANAPOLIS) - An Indianapolis mother is responding to accusations that she forced her 6-year-old son to sleep in a bathtub and run on a wooden surface until his feet blistered.
Fox 59 reported, Child Protective Services was called after the boy was taken to Riley Hospital Saturday afternoon. The boy's father told investigators he picked up his son, Kaden, from the 2600 block of South Lyons Avenue, where the boy lives with his mother and her boyfriend. That's when he noticed red marks around his son's neck.
Some of Kaden's family members believe his mother's boyfriend was responsible for his injuries.
"Supposedly it's a form of their punishment, making him run in place on wood," said Cenisa Morgan, Kaden's grandmother.
Fox59 reached out for comment from the mother and her boyfriend, but nobody answered the door Monday afternoon. After Fox 59's original story ran, his mother contacted us to tell her side of the story.
"It's ridiculous," she said. "I have nothing to hide. I don't abuse my children."
Fox59 is not naming Kaden's mother or her boyfriend as the case remains under investigation and no charges have been filed.
She doesn't understand how Kaden would wind up at the hospital on Saturday or how she would be blamed for abuse when she dropped him off with his grandmother on Friday afternoon. She went on to explain why Kaden slept in a bathtub.
"He did sleep in the bathtub. There was a pallet made. There was blankets. There was a pillow. It wasn't from wetting the bed. You know, kids wet the bed sometimes. It happens. It was because he gets up in the middle of the night and completely destroys my house."
Kaden's mother said he only slept in the bathtub once. She also said they never made him run in place.
"The form of punishment for us is instead of putting our hands on him is making him run around the house," she explained. "He had shoes on. He wasn't barefoot. He wasn't on any wooden surface or anything like that. He was running around the house."
A check of IMPD records reveals another report of abuse at the same home. In December 2011, Kaden told police his mother's boyfriend had forced a bar of soap into his mouth until it made him vomit. He also said his mother's boyfriend had pushed him to the ground, hitting his face on the floor.
"He actually did get a bar of soap put down his throat, because he was lying so much," Kaden's brother said.
Both believe Kaden has been acting out, because he hasn't seen his father for an extended period of time.But Kaden's other family members believe he should not be allowed to continue living in the home for his own safety. The family said a custody hearing has been set for later this week.
The matter is being complicated by divorce proceedings between Kaden's parents. That legal battle involves several violations of a protective order filed by the mother.
Family members said Kaden has since been placed in foster care.
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