Silver Spring woman given nine-year sentence for second-degree child abuse

by Jeremy Arias

A Silver Spring woman was sentenced to 15 years in prison in Montgomery County Circuit Court in Rockville Oct. 8 after she pleaded guilty to second-degree child abuse in an incident that occurred last summer.

Hyacinth Beverly Morgan, 47, will only serve nine years of her total sentence if she does not violate parole. She also must agree not to see the victim, who was her adopted daughter, or any other minor without the court's permission following her release. Judge Durke Thompson handed down the decision after hearing witness testimony and arguments from the defense and state's attorneys.

Some time between June 8 and 15, 2008, Morgan tied the victim – who was 11 at the time – to a bed and beat her with an electrical cord, injuring her face, back and genital area. The victim was then locked in the laundry room of the house and subjected to constant video surveillance before a power surge during a thunderstorm allowed her to escape through a window, according to court documents.

Emaciated and weak from the ordeal, the victim flagged down a car and asked to be driven to the McDonald's restaurant at 2741 University Blvd. in Wheaton. Restaurant employees called the police, who arrived and transported the victim to the Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

Morgan, who also has a son in his 30s, an infant daughter and custody of her niece's adolescent daughter, was interviewed by detectives from the Montgomery County Police's division on family crimes and eventually indicted by a grand jury Sept. 4, 2008.

During the sentencing, Morgan's defense attorney, Richard A. Finci argued that, while Morgan was guilty, she was influenced by her own history of abuse and depression to beat the victim, who Finci said was frequently disobedient.

"[Morgan has] become more and more depressed, she has an oppositional child who she loves very much, but ... these power struggles developed," he said.

Assistant State's Attorneys Deborah Feinstein and Ryan Wechsler suggested the maximum sentence of 15 years for Morgan, disregarding Finci's claims that Morgan was not completely responsible for her actions.

"The defendant, who was supposed to love and care for the victim, did the exact opposite," Feinstein told the judge. "In the state's opinion this is a case of child torture."

Feinstein said some time in January 2008, Morgan's then-boyfriend, Carlos Ortega, made inappropriate advances toward the victim, and, when she told Morgan about them, she become jealous and began locking the victim in the laundry room, depriving her of food and beating her.

Finci dismissed Feinstein's claims, citing the fact that Ortega, who had been living in the house, was charged with domestic violence against Morgan in October 2007 and was court-ordered against visiting Morgan. After violating the order twice, Ortega appears to have fled the country, Finci added.

Several witnesses appeared before Thompson, including Dr. Frederick Oeltjen, a Rockville-based clinical psychologist who has treated Morgan for depression since the case began. Oeltjen testified that placing Morgan in jail for an extended period of time would be "very harmful" to her recovery, a point Finci asked Thompson to consider in his sentencing.

The victim's therapist, Joyce Barnes-Pierce, also testified, saying she had diagnosed the victim with post-traumatic stress disorder and other behavioral problems due to Morgan's abuse.

Finci argued that the victim, who Morgan adopted from an orphanage in Colombia, suffered PTSD from her experiences before she was adopted, including her mother's tragic death and her uncle, who sexually abused her after her mother's death, according to Finci, who cited medical records.

Morgan testified just before Thompson announced the sentence, expressing her regret for the beating and maintaining that she still loves the victim and her other children.

"I started to talk to her [that day], and then I started to beat her," Morgan said through sobs. "I'm not proud of it; I wasn't thinking ... I'm sorry for the pain I caused her."

Ultimately Thompson delivered the sentence, citing his balancing of Morgan's obvious depression and need for rehabilitation against the intentional and ongoing nature of her abuse of the victim.

Morgan was given 30 days to appeal the sentence, either in court or by review from a panel of impartial judges. She has 90 days to ask the judge to reconsider her sentence. Finci, who refused to comment in detail on the sentence, did not know yet if Morgan planned to appeal.

Neither Feinstein nor Wechsler wished to comment on the judge's sentence.