Tylski Family Back in Court for Civil Trial

Ann Butler Taren Reed

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Former NFL offensive guard Rich Tylski and his wife are defending themselves today as a civil case brought on behalf of their adopted daughter who was abused while living with them got under way.

The couple is accused of hitting their adopted daughter in 2006 with a belt, slamming her head on a table and other abuse that left the girl, 6, with broken bones in her hands and leg.

In 2008, Jane Tylski, 36, pleaded guilty to aggravated child abuse in a criminal case and received probation. Her husband, the 35-year-old former Jacksonville Jaguars player, admitted the use of excessive punishment. The couple since has given up rights to the girl.

The judge is expected to make a decision on the suit next week.

Today, the first photos ever seen of the bruises on the girl were revealed in court. The pictures, taken at the hospital in March 2006, show bruises on the girl's chest legs and back. It also documents a broken finger and broken leg.

Jane Tylski told a judge today that her former daughter's story is false. When asked if she ever bit her child or told her she wanted her dead, Tylski responded, "Never."

The guardian ad litem is suing the couple to provide money for the girls' medical expenses for the rest of her life. She already has had some surgeries, but will need longterm psychological and physical care, according to the lawsuit.

Duval Department of Children and Families case worker Mike Kerrigan and Dr. Bruce McIntosh, of the state Child Protection Team, both testified about the victim's medical condition and abuse today.

The child, whose age and name were not released, was taken to a Jacksonville hospital in March 10 for a fractured right thigh bone. Her parents said she had fallen down the stairs about eight hours earlier.

She later told investigators that she lied about falling down the stairs and demonstrated on a doll how her mother had pushed her leg over her head until they heard a pop, the report said. The report also stated that Rich Tylski said he had hit the child with a belt.

The Department of Children and Families told police the girl missed 14 days of school from October to March.

During an interview March 24, the child told investigators that her mother slammed her head on the table when she would not eat. She said both her mother and father hit her. She said a scar on her forehead was from her mother slamming her head into the table, but denied her mother hurt her leg, the police report said.

In a second interview on April 3, the girl described how her mother would bend her fingers backward.

Tylski played the first four years of his career for the Jaguars, then spent four years with the Pittsburgh Steelers and one year with the Carolina Panthers before retiring after the 2004 season. On the police report, he said he was self-employed. His wife did not list an employer on her arrest report.