Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood only had one way to describe a mother accused of beating her son.
“We dubbed her around here as the mom from hell,” Chitwood said.
Hell is what 39-year-old Samantha Starnes of Upper Darby allegedly put her son through, leading to a shocking discovery.
The 11-year-old boy walked into the Upper Darby Community Policing Center on Tuesday, badly injured. He was met by Nashid Ali, a social worker who runs the center. The boy claimed his mother beat him with a belt inside their apartment on Radbourne Road on Sunday because he wasn’t doing his chores. The boy says his mother then returned an hour later to beat him again, this time using her fists. As he spoke, Ali says he saw the welts and bruises on the boy’s arms, back and legs.
“He lifted up his shirt,” Ali said. “His back was worse than his arms.”
Ali called both his supervisor and police to report the alleged abuse.
“What surprised me was that number one, he came in by himself,” Ali said. “Number two, he was 11-years-old and number three, I knew it was serious because he was patient.”
Investigators say they counted a total of 27 bruises and welts over the boy’s body.
Police later found and arrested Starnes, charging her with assault and endangering the welfare of a child. She’s awaiting her preliminary hearing, unable to post bail.
Starnes’ neighbor, who did not want to be identified, says she often heard name-calling echoing through the walls of her apartment but was disgusted to learn about the abuse allegations.
“She really needs some help,” the neighbor said. “They shouldn’t let her a** out of jail, no offense. Keep her in jail.”
As for her son, officials with the Children and Youth Services are working with family members to develop a safety plan for the child.
Photo Credit: Upper Darby Police