Attorney: Mom of abused child also victim of abuse

A mother charged with the aggravated child abuse of her 7-year-old son conceded to authorities she deserved just as much punishment as her child endured.

But aside from prison time, authorities said it’s unlikely June Victoria Henry will ever suffer even some of what her son Chad went through.

Henry, 28, was charged in 2007 after Chad endured burns, broken ribs, open sores and insect bites without medical care for at least a week. Her then-boyfriend, 25-year-old Eddie Ledbetter, is serving a 20-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to the same charge.

Henry alleged Ledbetter caused Chad’s injuries, but she pleaded guilty for a suspended sentence of 15 years in a state prison. She was on bond pending her probation hearing on Tuesday, but was taken back into custody after the hearing was continued until later this summer.

“Tell Chad I’m sorry and (his sister), too. All I ask is that you let my family continue to see my kids,” Henry told the family of Chad’s father after Dale County Circuit Judge Ken Quattlebaum ordered her back to jail. “I deserve just as much as they did.”

Dale County Chief Sheriff’s Investigator Harvey Mathis testified Henry did not cause Chad’s injuries, but also did not do anything to prevent them. She watched Ledbetter force Chad to eat hot sauce on a daily basis and admitted to Ledbetter possibly burning Chad, Mathis said.

Mathis said Henry sought help when she was abused by Ledbetter, but never sought help for Chad until taking him to Dale Medical Center at least a week later. It was there that officials notified law enforcement of Chad’s injuries.

Chad had been in Henry’s custody for at least three months as part of a custody agreement with Chad’s father. The two were legally separated, he said.

Henry’s attorney, Jim Jacobs, said Henry was diagnosed with a sub-category of post-traumatic stress disorder likely brought on by Ledbetter’s abuse to both her and Chad. “Love letters” she wrote to Ledbetter were signed “Jennifer Ledbetter,” which authorities said Ledbetter wanted her to be called.

Jacobs said to incarcerate Henry without determining the degree of her illness was injustice. While Henry is back in jail, the hearing was continued until a full report is completed by medical officials who examined Henry.

“She failed as a mother — that’s not in dispute. She didn’t do what she was supposed to do. But if she suffered from some kind of psychiatric disorder ... then to incarcerate her and assume she is guilty would be a mockery of this whole hearing,” he said.

“She’s already lost everything. She will never have a relationship with her children again.”

Dale County District Attorney Emeritus David Emery said Henry’s guilty plea was no reason for her to walk free. Emery said Henry was let out on bond to have another child, but that the district attorney’s office assumed then she would be taken back into custody.

“Today is the first day we’ve seen any emotion from her. Her son was tortured, and she’d hold a straight face when talking about that, but when it’s her, we have tears,” he said.

“It’s this type of case where our community demands the defendant goes to prison. This child was tortured a number of weeks. It’s just a shame she was out here walking the streets and having another child.”