The death of a four-year-old girl at Ramona is being called child abuse. That brings to three, the number of children reported killed within just days.
The latest child was taken to the hospital at Owasso last month, but later died. The death has been ruled a homicide. The girl's mother and boyfriend have been arrested in Washington County.
Melissa Gantz is an investigator with the Child Abuse Network in Tulsa. She says if you even suspect child abuse you must report it. She says that is the law in Oklahoma.
While Gantz is seeing an uptick in cases, she hopes it is better reporting of child abuse that is leading to that increase and not more abuse. However, she concedes it could be a combination of both factors.
She says it is far better to walk away from a screaming child than to strike it. She says parents must fully vet anyone that they are entrusting to care for their child. In at least two of the recent cases, a boyfriend was left alone as the caregiver.