Cape Girardeau woman charged in alleged child abuse case

Two children claimed that a woman choked, scratched and bit them, according to a probable-cause statement signed by a Cape Girardeau police officer.

Nichole Sutterer of Cape Girardeau faces two charges of abuse or neglect of a child after a friend of Sutterer's brought the children into the police station after noticing scrapes, bruises and bite marks, according to the probable-cause statement written by a police officer whose name was redacted.

One of the children told police that Sutterer grabbed her neck with both of her hands and picked her up from the ground by the neck.

"Her said she would kill me," the child told the officer, according to the court document.

The officer observed purple bruising on the sides of the child's neck below and along her chin area on both sides. One of the children also had a bite mark on her left arm, above the elbow, the report stated. The report stated Sutterer denied injuring the children, "but admitted to getting upset" and grabbing one of the children "firmly by the wrist/hand and pulling her up."

In February 2022, Sutterer was charged in Scott County with second-degree endangering the welfare of a child. She was sentenced to 24 months of supervised probation in that case, according to Missouri's online court database.

The charge of abuse or neglect of a child is a Class D Felony, which is punishable by up to seven years in prison or one year in the county jail. Judge Frank Miller imposed a $10,000 cash or surety bond.