Mother Who Did Not Properly Feed, Care For Child Gets Prison Time

MCHENRY COUNTY, IL — A 51-year-old McHenry County mother, who did not provide proper nutrition or medical care for her 6-year-old child for years, has been sentenced to three years in prison on reckless conduct charges.

McHenry County Judge Mark Gerhardt handed down the sentence to Margaret Wisner, 51, of Harvard, during a hearing this past week in McHenry County Circuit Court. She was convicted during a bench trial in September.

Authorities first launched an investigation into winner after her 6-year-old child was admitted to a hospital in Wisconsin. Hospital staff "out of grave concern for the child," who was severely malnourished notified the Department of Children and Family Services. DCFS alerted the Harvard Police Department to the situation, according to a news release from the McHenry County State's Attorney's Office.

During the investigation, it was discovered that the child had not been receiving medical care or proper nutrition for several years. At the time of the hospitalization, the child weighed under 30 pounds. The child was also diagnosed with several other conditions due to diagnoses related to malnutrition and lack of medical care, including failure to thrive, refeeding syndrome, rickets, osteopenia and scurvy.

Wisner was found guilty of failing to provide both adequate nutrition and adequate medical care to a minor over a 2-year period, which caused great bodily harm to the minor.