27-year-old woman, who beat her 8-year-old stepdaughter with a frying pan, made her eat “gummy laxatives,” cat treats and poop, and clean her waste with her face rubbed in carpet, was sentenced
South Carolina – In one of the most disturbing cases of child abuse in South Carolina to reach the courts recently, a 27-year-old woman, identified as T. Draper, has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for what authorities and medical professionals have called “child torture.” The abuse Draper inflicted on her 8-year-old stepdaughter was both physical and psychological—leaving behind scars that may last far longer than any prison sentence. Draper pleaded guilty to 20 counts of unlawful neglect of a child and two counts of obstruction of justice, according to court records. On Wednesday, a judge handed down the sentence, also ordering five years of supervised release once Draper completes her time behind bars.
Authorities first became involved on September 2, 2022, when the Department of Social Services (DSS) requested help from law enforcement for a suspected child abuse case at a residence. According to the sheriff’s office, a caseworker had visited the home multiple times, but the adults living there had allegedly hidden the victim during those checks. When deputies arrived that day, they found four adults and four children. The oldest child, later identified as the victim, had a noticeable limp and was covered in temporary tattoos, allegedly used to conceal visible bruises on her legs. Draper reportedly admitted to using makeup to cover the injuries once DSS began visiting the home more frequently.
The children were taken into emergency protective custody, and the oldest was immediately hospitalized due to severe bruising and concerns about blood loss. During medical evaluations and interviews, both doctors and investigators began to uncover a pattern of abuse that led one forensic expert to declare the case a textbook instance of child torture. According to investigators and prosecutors, the child suffered routine, calculated abuse. Among the most shocking allegations was that Draper made the girl eat cat poop and cat treats, along with gummy laxatives the child believed were candy. She was also beaten with cords, boards, and frying pans, sat on, and forced to stand in a garbage can.
When not being beaten or humiliated, the child was forced to sit in freezing water in the bathtub, forced to sleep in closets, and made to kneel for long periods in wooden crates. The abuse extended to bathroom control; she was not allowed to use the toilet, and when she had accidents, she was forced to clean up her waste. In one instance, prosecutors said, her face was rubbed into the carpet as punishment for not cleaning well enough. The victim’s pain was echoed by her own words at the time of her rescue. When removed from the home, she looked up at officers and said, “This is the best day of my life.”
The felony cases against three additional co-defendants, including the girl’s father, identified as I. Tatro, the girl’s step-grandmother, and her step-uncle, are still pending. Prosecutors allege that all four adults in the household participated in the ongoing abuse. For now, Draper will serve a 35-year sentence in a state correctional facility. While the legal process continues for the remaining suspects, one thing is clear: the girl survived unimaginable torment at the hands of people she should have been able to trust. With her abuser now behind bars and the truth exposed, the child’s words—spoken on the day she was freed—resonate with a chilling clarity. After years of being silenced and hidden, her best day finally arrived.
