Mother and Grandmother Accused of Restraining Girl, 11, to Bed, Forcing Her to Eat Cat Food: DA

Now, her mother and grandmother have been charged with aggravated assault of a child under 13, conspiracy, unlawful restraint, false imprisonment, endangering the welfare of a child, recklessly endangering another person, simple assault, and tampering with evidence.

The charges come some months after the girl was finally removed from the custody of Amanda Lynn Gregorio (above right), 35, and Stacey Ann Louder (above left), 52, following a shocking trip to the hospital. She was 11 at the time.

On September 4, 2024, Luzerne County Children, Youth and Families took custody of the minor after she had been admitted to the hospital with seizure-like symptoms, per Crime Online.

Hospital officials quickly noticed substantial abrasions, bruising and scars from restraints, as well as the fact the 12-year-old girl was severely malnourished. She weighed 50 pounds at the time of her admittance, per PennLive, which put her in the 0.01 percentile for a healthy child her age.

According to the arrest report, doctors also determined that Gregorio had allegedly overmedicated her daughter with Benadryl and melatonin before the seizure-like incident.

Her medical records revealed a history of fractures and broken bones dating back to 2017, per WNEP. Hospital employees contacted Children & Youth on suspicion the girl was being abused and she was removed from the home about a week later.

In their investigation of the case, as reported by WBRE/WYOU, the girl told detectives in Exeter that she was restrained to the bed by her hands, feet, legs, and chest, even while sleeping. She said she was often restrained for so long that she would have to urinate and defacate in the bed.

Gregorio allegedly told a witness who was cooperating with police, per the filing reported on by WNEP, that she would feed the girl cat food and had restrained her to the bed "for weeks."

She also reportedly blamed her own mother, saying on the call she "did not like doing this...but the co-defendant (Louder) was making her," per legal filings. Detectives found a surveillance camera in the girls' room to ensure she didn't get out of her restraints.

Though investigators cannot say why, according to WNEP's reporting, Gregorio allegedly shared pictures of the girl restrained to the bed, with one describing it to detectives as like "Jesus on the cross, being restrained to the bed."

The investigation also uncovered that the girl used to attend a traditional brick-and-mortar school. That changed after school officials asked her about a black eye in February 2023 and after initially telling a social worker her mother had hit her for scratching herself, she changed her story to say she walked into a wall. By the end of the month, she was removed and enrolled in an online school.

"The abuse of this child offends the sense of decency of every mother, grandmother, and otherwise respectable person imaginable," said Luzerne County District Attorney Sam Sanguedolce. "The very people to whom this child would look to keep her safe, were her assailants."

"It is difficult to imagine the sense of hopelessness abused children in these situations must feel," the statement continued. "We will seek the maximum penalties permitted by law in the hope of sending the message that this behavior deserves fierce punishment."

Gregorio and Louder are being held on $125,000 bail each. Their preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 6.

If you are experiencing or witness child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. If you believe a child is in immediate danger, call 911.