Woman accused of abusing child with electric cord

CHARLESTON, Mo. -- A Wyatt, Missouri, woman faces child-abuse charges after she was accused of striking and injuring a child with an extension cord.

Eddie Mae Washington, 50, is charged with abuse of a child, a felony punishable upon conviction by up to seven years in the Missouri Department of Corrections.

Mississippi County Sheriff Keith Moore said the investigation began Wednesday when a deputy was sent to a Wyatt residence to investigate allegations of child abuse.

When he arrived, the officer, Mike Borders, met with representatives from the Mississippi County Juvenile Office and Missouri Children's Division and learned Washington reportedly had assaulted a young child, Moore said.

During the course of the investigation, Borders found probable cause to believe Washington had struck a young child with an extension cord repeatedly, leaving torn flesh and significant bruising across the child's back, according to the sheriff.

Washington was placed under arrest and taken to the Mississippi County Detention Center.

An arraignment is scheduled for 9:15 a.m. Wednesday before Judge S. Rob Barker.