Boy Said He Was Beaten for Asking Family Member to Come to First Day

A woman was arrested Sunday evening after she allegedly beat a 10-year-old boy because he asked her if she would come with him on his first day of school, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office.

Lora Katherine Wyatt, 30, of Sarasota, was charged with child abuse and possession of marijuana after she allegedly became intoxicated and got physical with the boy who is a family member.

The SCSO deputies responded to the home after a neighbor said she could hear the boy yelling for help from inside the house.

The boy told deputies that Wyatt became upset with him because he went into her bedroom to ask if she would go with him on his first day of school.  

He said she grabbed him by the shirt collar and pulled him to the ground, yelling at him to leave the room, according to the report.  She then began punching him on his torso, a report said. Deputies noted that the victim’s shirt had been torn and he had scratches and bruising on his body.

Wyatt said she did shove the victim, but that she did it in self-defense after being bit on the arm, the report said. The deputy said Wyatt did have a bite mark on her right arm but it appeared to be self-inflicted, as it had lipstick around it. The boy, the deputy wrote, was not wearing lipstick.

When deputies searched Wyatt, they found a baggie of marijuana in her purse. 

Wyatt was taken to Sarasota County Jail where she is being held without bond.