Inset: Jenice Long (La Crosse County Jail). Background: The La Crosse County Courthouse and Law Enfocement Center in La Crosse, Wisconsin (La Crosse County Sheriff’s Office).
A woman in Wisconsin is accused of denying her 5-year-old daughter emergency medical care for an infected tooth that authorities say was so bad it could have killed the child.
Jenice Long, 44, has been charged with neglecting a child causing great bodily harm, according to La Crosse County court records reviewed by Law&Crime. She was booked into the La Crosse County Jail and made an initial appearance in court this week.
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On Halloween, the La Crosse Police Department was called to a hospital due to a woman yelling at its staff and refusing to allow them to treat her child, local ABC affiliate WXOW reported. The child, a 5-year-old girl, apparently had a tooth that was so infected doctors believed she was at a severe risk of suffocation and death.
Despite the medical professionals’ warnings, however, Long reportedly left the medical center with her daughter. About four hours later, they returned, and the child’s condition was much worse.
According to authorities, doctors told the mother that they now needed to fly the girl to another hospital for treatment. Once again, though, she allegedly refused, and Wisconsin Child Protective Services came to the hospital.
Long eventually authorized the airlift. She was then arrested and booked into jail.
It is unclear why Long was originally against the medical treatment, according to authorities. The child’s current status is also not clear.
During her initial appearance in court, Long was ordered to be held in jail on a $1,000 signature bond. She is due to return to court on Nov. 12.
La Crosse, Wisconsin, is a city on the western edge of the state right on the border with Minnesota.
The post Mother refused to let 5-year-old daughter get treated for infected tooth that doctors said was so bad she could have suffocated and died: Cops first appeared on Law & Crime.
