An Adoptive Colorado Mother Wanted to Punish Her ‘Naughty’ 6-Year-Old Son. Now, He’ll ‘Never Recover From His Injuries.’

A Colorado woman received a sentence of 32 years in prison for the abuse of her adopted 6-year-old son, which led to significant head and bodily injuries in January 2022, according to authorities.

A Montezuma County judge recently sentenced Garland Malcolm to the maximum amount of time for child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury, according to The Journal.

Jeremy Reed, 22nd District Deputy District Attorney, said, “Today, the child injured in this incident received some small amount of justice. [He] will never recover from his injuries, and will never regain the life he had.”

According to court documents, Malcolm and her husband adopted the boy and his brother in 2020. By January 2022, the victim had suffered such severe abuse that he was transported to Southwest Memorial Hospital in an unresponsive state. Upon detecting signs of abuse, the medical staff alerted the Montezuma County Sheriff's Office.

Sgt. Bryan Hill said doctors determined the child was suffering a brain bleed, skull fracture, torn neck ligaments and hemorrhages in both retinas, The Journal reported. Medical staff intubated the young victim.

At the time, Malcolm claimed the boy injured himself, but doctors said the injuries were not self-inflicted.

Reed previously told The Journal, “The child can’t walk, can’t talk and can’t interact with the world in any meaningful way.”

Investigators talked with the other children in the home, which included the victim’s two siblings and the couple’s biological child. They learned the children were made to run laps for being “naughty” and Malcolm hit them with hairbrushes, bloodying their noses.

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“I especially thank the members of the jury, who sat through very difficult testimony and photographic evidence, respected and followed their oath, and delivered a just and fair verdict," Reed said of the court case.

The Journal reported that the three siblings are now in the care of a new family and doing better.