Magnolia razes house where rats bit infant

A house in Magnolia that was condemned after an infant inside was reportedly bitten by rats up to 100 times was set ablaze Monday and destroyed in a controlled burn, officials said.

The 880- square- foot, one- story building at 214 S. Cordelia St. was burned about 6: 15 p. m., according to the Magnolia Fire Department.

The wooden- framed building had been part of an investigation into the injuries earlier this year of the 2- week- old, 5- pound baby.

On June 26, the Magnolia City Council voted to condemn the house and ordered that it be demolished. The building’s owner, Jim Brewster, had until Aug. 7 to repair the structure or remove it.

The girl’s parents — Erica Shryock, 19, and Charles Elliott, 18 — reportedly awoke May 14 to find the child covered in blood with rat bites on her face, arms, hands and fingers. An infant toboggan soaked in blood and a blood- soaked blanket were reportedly found inside the home.

A 1- inch wound on the baby’s forehead left her skull visible and required extensive reconstructive surgery, authorities said.

Dr. Karen Farst at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock told investigators that the baby would have been in distress because of the injuries, and she believed the parents were either “absent or incapacitated” to not have reacted, according to an affidavit filed in Columbia County Circuit Court.

Shryock and Elliott each face felony charges of permitting abuse of a minor and first- degree endangering the welfare of a minor. If convicted, they could be imprisoned for up to 20 years and be required to pay up to $ 21,000 in fines.

Their cases were placed on hold in early July pending the completion of mental evaluations.