BEDFORD – Cherry Blattert of Springville will face sentencing this Friday in Lawrence County Superior Court II for charges related to child neglect and domestic battery. The hearing, scheduled for 10 a.m., follows her October 2024 guilty plea to neglect of a dependent, a Level 6 felony, and domestic battery, a Class A misdemeanor.
Special Judge Christine Talley Haseman, who accepted Blattert’s negotiated plea agreement, will preside over the sentencing. The charges stem from a November 2019 arrest, when Blattert initially faced more serious allegations, including neglect of a dependent resulting in bodily injury, a Level 5 felony.
The case is connected to that of her husband, Scott Blattert, who was sentenced to 13 years in prison in May 2023 for child abuse. Court records show he used industrial glue sticks and a belt to discipline their children. The Indiana Court of Appeals recently upheld his conviction.
During her husband’s trial, Cherry Blattert waived her Fifth Amendment rights. She testified about the couple’s religious beliefs and family structure, stating, “God is sovereign in all parts of our life” and describing her husband as “the head of the house.” The couple, parents to 11 children, previously attempted to use Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act as a defense, arguing their disciplinary methods were based on biblical teachings. This defense was rejected by Judge Plummer and later by the Indiana Court of Appeals.
Cherry Blattert also pleaded guilty to invasion of privacy, a Class A misdemeanor, after she violated a court order protective order and made contact with her children after her initial arrest. She pleaded guilty to that charge in October 2024, was sentenced to 365 days in jail, and was given four days of jail time credit. Judge John Plummer III suspended 357 days of that sentence that Blattert will serve on supervised probation. This sentence will run consecutively with the sentence she receives on Friday.
Cherry Blattert filed for divorce from her husband on October 28, 2024. That case is still pending.
All of the Blatterts’ children have since been placed with foster families or adopted following the termination of their parental rights.
