4-year-old Child Zip-tied To Baby Gate, Hit In Face, Couple Under Arrest For Child Abuse, North Carolina

A couple in Raleigh, North Carolina, has been accused of zip-tying their 4-year-old daughter's wrists and ankles to a baby gate and are currently in prison facing charges of child abuse.

North Carolina authorities said that Gerald Swinehart, 26, secured his daughter to the gate with plastic ties before striking her in the face so hard that her bottom teeth came through her lower lip, the Examiner reports.  Swinehart is believed to have then fled to Florida with his girlfriend.  He is facing charges of intentional child abuse and inflicting serious physical injury.

WBTW reports that Swinehart's 28-year-old girlfriend, Marlaine Victoie Coffey, took the child to a hospital and checked her in using a fake name before the two of them fled to Florida.  The couple was later apprehended.

Both Swinehart and Coffey, have been arrested and the warrants say that the abuse occurred earlier this year, according to the Christian Science Monitor.  The 4-year-old girl was taken into the custody of social services on March 31.  The current condition of the child is not yet known.

Coffey is being held under a bond of $50,000 while Swinehart is in custody under a $100,000 bond, according to the Examiner.  The judge said that he intends to keep track of Swinehart if he is able to make bond and he will be required to wear an ankle bracelet while he is under house arrest.  It is not yet clear if Swinehart or Coffey have an attorney of any kind.

The Examiner reports that. "while it's unclear just how long the couple will spend behind bars if they are found guilty of the child abuse charges against them, it's currently believed they could do serious time."