DELAWARE, Ohio (WCMH) – A Delaware County woman facing felony charges related to the abuse of children was indicted this week.
According to the Delaware Court of Common Pleas, Rhonda Coomes of Randor was arrested Jan. 26 and initially charged with one count of kidnaping. At the time, the sheriff’s office said the charge was a “placeholder” and that Coomes, who owned and operated her own in-home daycare, would likely “be charged with felonies related to her physical abuse of more than a half-dozen different kids.”
On Wednesday a grand jury returned an indictment of 17 charges. They include:
The charges encompass a timeframe between January 2021 through September 2023 and involve eight children under the age of 13. Among the charges are accusations of torture, abuse, restraint, physical harm. The kidnaping charge is a first-degree felony, and the child endangerment charge constitutes a third-degree felony.
Coomes was originally issued a $500,000 bond for one kidnaping charge in February. She will next appear in court Monday for an arraignment hearing on all 17 charges.
According to court documents, in September, Coomes allegedly injured a 10-month-old girl by hitting her multiple times in the face with the palm of her hand and six times with a “hard plastic diaper wipe container.” The child suffered a black eye, court records state.
Coomes also allegedly threw the child onto her back into a playpen and then hit her, according to court records.
“The defendant had her restrained to the highchair or restrained to a chair, struck the child on a number of occasions with an open hand to the face, then used a hard plastic diaper wipe container to strike the infant again repeatedly in the face,” said Mark Sleeper, a Delaware County assistant prosecutor.
That same day, Coomes allegedly abused a 3-year-old for not eating fast enough. She is now accused of abusing six additional children.
If you believe child abuse and neglect is happening, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services has launched 855-OH-Child (855-642-4453), an automated telephone directory that will link callers to a child welfare of law enforcement office in their county.
