A Warsaw woman was arrested on Thursday, Feb. 5, for the reported battery of a child under 14 years.

According to the probable cause affidavit issued by the Kosciusko County Prosecutor’s office on Friday, Jan. 30, officers with the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department were called by a representative of the Department of Child Services regarding a battery reported at Leesburg School.

After arriving on-scene, KCSD officer Todd Sautter spoke with the victim in the nurses offices on how the victim had received several bruises. The victim informed Sautter that she had been struck with a paddle by Shawndra Dawn Gaylord, 37, of Levi Lee Road, Warsaw.

Photographs of the bruises were taken by the school nurse. Bruises were found on the arm and buttocks area and looked as though they were made by a paddle with holes in it. An abrasion was found on the upper part of her right arm and extensive bruising was reported on the victim’s buttocks.

According to a statement by the victim, Gaylord had asked the child to clean up the kitchen and her bedroom. After cleaning the kitchen, the victim went to her room where she was grabbed by her hair and drug back into the kitchen. The victim was then thrown to the floor and told she did not clean it well enough. The victim attempted to clean the floor again and proceeded to clean her room when Gaylord took a paddle and struck her bare skin while the victim laid on her stomach on her bed. The victim reported she was struck approximately 20 times by Gaylord.

During an interview with Gaylord she was asked what occurred that night. Gaylord responded to police that she “busted” her butt. She stated she believed she had struck the child five or six times. When shown photographs of the bruising and asked if she thought that it was acceptable, Gaylord reportedly stated, “No, it’s not.”

Gaylord was booked into the Kosciusko County Jail on a $500 cash bond.