ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – A Florida woman was sentenced to six months behind bars after pleading no contest to child abuse charges stemming from an incident in which she hit a 7-year-old with a belt, according to WJXT.
Amanda Dea Rauch, 23, was sentenced to half a year in jail and three-plus years of probation, KSAT 12's sister station in Jacksonville reported.
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Per the report, the 7-year-old girl told a relative last summer that bruises on her body came at the hands of Rauch. The girl said Rauch's friend suggested wetting the belt she was struck with "to make it hurt worse."
The friend the child mentioned refused to talk to investigators, saying she didn’t want to be involved, WJXT reported.
According to the TV station, Rauch admitted to "spanking the child over the clothes with her hand, but contended a belt was never used." But, investigators said the girl had "visible horizontal bruises on the lower half of her body that appeared to be consistent with a belt or some kind of object."