Published: June 19, 2006 10:29 am      

Hartshorne woman being held on child abuse by injury charges

A Hartshorne woman is currently being held at the Pittsburg County Jail in lieu of a $250,000 bond.

Brandy Cacy, 23, has been charged with child abuse by injury. A Hartshorne man is also being held in connection with the case, however charges on the man have yet to be filed.

District 2 Child Abuse Prevention Task Force member Deputy Tom Steele, of the Pittsburg County Sheriff’s Department, said the case is still under investigation.

“We’re talking about a 13 month old and a two-and-a half year old,” Steele said. “The only things we know for sure now are the youngest was covered in bumps and bruises and the older one had some bruises too. The children are not hospitalized and are in the custody of the Department of Human Services.”

Steele said the children have undergone bone scans and other tests to look for possible past injuries. Investigators will know more when the test results are in, according to Steele.

Steel said the case was passed down to Pittsburg County from the Woodward DHS.

“They had been picked up from Hartshorne by a family member from Woodward,” Steele said. “The hospital had to call DHS, who transferred it to the sheriff’s department because it was criminal. This was the weekend of the 10th and 11th. I didn’t receive all of the info until the 14th.”

Steele said Cacy has requested an attorney and contends the injuries were accidental. He expects the second suspect to be formally charged later this afternoon.

A search warrant was also served on Cacy’s residence.

“We did find some items involving the children,” Steele said. “Those will be turned over to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.”

Steele couldn’t elaborate on the nature of the items found.

Contact Trevor Dunbar at tdunbar@mcalesternews.com