• Cleveland mother Antavia Kennibrew discovers daughter scalped, beaten and sexually assaulted by group of children under 10
• Five-year-old A’Marie found unconscious in wooded area with hair ripped from scalp and signs of strangulation, covered in blood and bruises
• Ohio law prevents prosecution of 8 and 9-year-old attackers, leaving family frustrated as only 10-year-old suspect may face charges

CLEVELAND, Ohio (TDR) — A bubbly five-year-old girl who loved to crack jokes and hug strangers became unrecognizable to her own mother after a gang of young children brutally beat, scalped and sexually assaulted her last month in a Cleveland field. Now her family is demanding justice while confronting a legal system they say has failed them.

Antavia Kennibrew dropped her daughter, A’Marie, at a trusted family member’s home near 145th and St. Clair on Sept. 13 while she underwent a medical procedure. Within hours, her world collapsed. The family member called in a panic: A’Marie had walked out the front door and vanished. When Kennibrew arrived at the scene minutes later, she found emergency responders treating her daughter in an ambulance.

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A mother’s nightmare

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“I literally saw the worst thing ever. I saw my daughter unrecognizable,” Kennibrew said in interviews with local media. The girl lay unconscious, her small body telling the horrific story of what had transpired. Her hair had been ripped from her scalp. Blood covered her eyes, mouth and lips. Bruises marked her entire body. Dirt and debris filled her fingernails and private areas. Her neck showed clear signs of strangulation.

My daughter was not my daughter.

A witness reported seeing three children under age 10 take A’Marie to a wooded area in the 1000 block of East 148th Street. Court documents reveal the attackers beat the kindergartner until she lost consciousness, sexually assaulted her, urinated on her, attempted to strangle her with her own shirt, then left her naked and unresponsive in the field. When A’Marie regained consciousness, she screamed that she thought she was dead.

System fails to protect

What compounds the family’s trauma is discovering that Ohio law severely limits prosecution of the youngest attackers. While a 10-year-old suspect may face charges, authorities told Kennibrew that the 8 and 9-year-old suspects cannot be charged under state law. Ohio sets minimum age thresholds for juvenile prosecution, and children under 10 cannot be designated as serious youth offenders regardless of the crime’s severity.

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“They are trying to tell me that two of the kids can’t and won’t be charged because they are 8 and 9 years old even though they attempted to murder my baby and they raped and beat her,” Kennibrew wrote in a GoFundMe campaign that has raised over $25,000 for A’Marie’s care and legal fees. “They are saying legally these two boys cannot be charged.”

The Cleveland Division of Police Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Unit confirmed it’s “actively investigating a case involving multiple children under the age of 10, both as victims and as suspects.” Spokesman Sgt. Freddy Diaz defended the department’s approach, telling reporters, “Given the sensitive nature of the matter, the release of further information at this time could jeopardize the integrity of the investigation and violate the constitutional rights and privacy of those involved.”

The attackers’ families

Adding another layer to this tragedy, Kennibrew credits one mother’s conscience with potentially saving her daughter’s life. Two of the boys initially denied knowing A’Marie’s whereabouts. But their mother forced them to return to the family member’s home and reveal where they’d left the child. “If them two kids’ mother did not make them boys go back to my family member and let her know where my daughter was at, my baby wouldn’t be found right now,” Kennibrew wrote. “My baby wouldn’t be alive.”

The incident raises disturbing questions about what could drive children so young to commit such violence. Child psychologists note that extreme aggression and sexual behaviors in pre-adolescent children often signal their own histories of abuse or exposure to violence, though no information about the suspects’ backgrounds has been released.

A child forever changed

The attack has shattered A’Marie’s childhood innocence. “The bubbly five-year-old, she was not there no more,” Kennibrew said. Her daughter is undergoing therapy through Journey/Frontline while the family seeks their own counseling. But the transformation runs deeper than physical scars. “She is having behavioral problems. She is mentally not OK,” the mother shared. “She is saying suicidal things.”

Kennibrew initially avoided media attention, not wanting her daughter’s trauma “plastered everywhere when she has to constantly see what happened to her.” But frustration with the justice system pushed her to go public. She’s reached out to Legal Aid, the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, rape crisis centers and even Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb‘s office seeking help.

Community rallies

Cleveland residents have responded with an outpouring of support. Dozens gathered Friday at the Zelma Watson George Recreation Center for a toy drive benefiting A’Marie. A Change.org petition demanding justice for the child has collected thousands of signatures. Yet for Kennibrew, no amount of community support can replace what was stolen from her daughter.

“I want her to be somewhat of a normal five-year-old again,” she said. Her pretrial date is scheduled for Dec. 16, with the case’s outcome potentially setting precedent for how Ohio handles violent crimes committed by very young children.

Should the criminal justice system find ways to hold children under 10 accountable for violent crimes, or does prosecuting such young offenders create more harm than justice?

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