Utah mother charged with child torture in years of alleged abuse – KUTV

Report on Child Abuse Case in Salt Lake County

Case Summary

• Defendant: Elizabeth Rose Conlin, 42
• Victims: 11-year-old male and 8-year-old female
• Primary Charges: Child torture, aggravated child abuse
• Jurisdiction: 3rd District Court, Salt Lake County
• Alleged Timeframe of Abuse: 2022 through July 2025

Incident Details and Investigation

Allegations of Abuse

1. Excessive Corporal Punishment: The male victim was allegedly spanked approximately 40 times and the female victim 10 times in a single incident, resulting in bruising.
2. Prolonged Punitive Confinement: The male victim reported being forced to stand in a corner for periods of up to eight hours.
3. Forced Physical Exertion: As a form of punishment, the male victim was allegedly forced to run 300 laps.

Investigative Process

• The Sandy Police Department conducted the investigation into the report of child abuse.
• Court documents indicate the male victim had been previously interviewed but was allegedly coerced by the defendant to conceal the abuse.
• The victims disclosed the alleged abuse after the defendant was arrested in July on unrelated charges, including stalking and protective order violations.

Implications for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

• This case highlights a severe violation of Target 16.2: End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children. The alleged actions constitute direct forms of violence and torture against minors.
• The response by law enforcement and the judicial system represents an effort to uphold Target 16.3: Promote the rule of law and ensure equal access to justice. The prosecution seeks to provide justice for the victims and ensure accountability, reinforcing the role of strong institutions in protecting vulnerable populations.

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

• The alleged physical and psychological abuse directly contravenes the core mission of SDG 3, which is to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all.
• The long-term physical and mental health consequences for children subjected to such trauma present a significant barrier to achieving well-being throughout their life-course.

SDG 4: Quality Education

• The abusive environment described, including extreme and prolonged punishments, fundamentally undermines a child’s ability to engage in education.
• Such trauma and instability are incompatible with the safe, non-violent, and inclusive learning environments stipulated in Target 4.a, thereby obstructing the children’s right to a quality education.

SDG 5: Gender Equality

• Violence against children, which in this case involves both a male and a female victim, is a critical barrier to achieving gender equality.
• Protecting all children from violence is essential for their development and empowerment, allowing them to participate fully and equally in society as they mature.

Current Legal Status

• Elizabeth Rose Conlin remains in custody at the Salt Lake County Jail without bail.
• A plea has not yet been entered.
• A hearing is scheduled to take place in 3rd District Court.
• An ex-boyfriend is also named as a defendant in the case, though his specific charges were not detailed in the initial filing.

SDGs Addressed in the Article

• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions: The article’s core theme is violence against children and the response of the justice system, which directly aligns with this goal’s aim to end violence, torture, and abuse while promoting justice through effective institutions like the police and courts.
• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being: The severe physical and psychological abuse described, including charges of “child torture” and punishments that left bruises, represents a direct assault on the children’s physical health and mental well-being.
• SDG 5: Gender Equality: As one of the victims is an 8-year-old girl subjected to violence in her home, the article touches upon the issue of violence against girls, a key concern of SDG 5.

Specific SDG Targets Identified

• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

  • Target 16.2: End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children. The article is a direct case study of this target. It details formal charges of “child torture” and “aggravated child abuse” against an 11-year-old boy and an 8-year-old girl, describing specific acts of violence such as being spanked “about 40 times” and forced to “run 300 laps as punishment.”
  • Target 16.3: Promote the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensure equal access to justice for all. The article illustrates the justice process in action. It mentions that a “detective from the Sandy Police Department investigated the report,” “charging documents [were] filed,” and a “hearing is scheduled in 3rd District Court.” This shows the mechanisms of the rule of law being applied to provide the child victims with access to justice.

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

  • Target 3.4: …promote mental health and well-being. The alleged abuse, which includes being “forced to stand in the corner for up to eight hours” and being intimidated by their mother not to “say anything bad about her,” constitutes severe psychological abuse that directly undermines the children’s mental health and well-being. The physical abuse also harms their physical well-being.

• SDG 5: Gender Equality

  • Target 5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres… The case involves an 8-year-old girl who was a victim of physical violence (“spanked…10 times, leaving bruises”) within her own home, which is a private sphere. This directly relates to the goal of eliminating violence against girls.

Indicators for Measuring Progress

The article does not explicitly mention official SDG indicator codes, but it provides qualitative and case-specific data that directly relate to how progress towards the targets is measured.

• Implied Indicator for Target 16.2

  • The article’s content serves as an anecdotal data point for Indicator 16.2.1: Proportion of children aged 1–17 years who experienced any physical punishment and/or psychological aggression by caregivers in the past month. The detailed accounts of the boy and girl being spanked, forced to stand for hours, and forced to run laps are clear examples of the physical punishment and psychological aggression this indicator aims to measure. The entire news report is about a specific instance of this phenomenon.

• Implied Indicator for Target 16.3

  • The actions described in the article relate to Indicator 16.3.1: Proportion of victims of violence in the previous 12 months who reported their victimization to competent authorities… The article states, “the children came forward after Conlin was arrested,” and the boy was interviewed by a “detective from the Sandy Police Department.” This act of reporting the abuse to the police is precisely what this indicator tracks. The subsequent filing of charges is a further measure of the justice system’s response.

Summary of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: kutv.com