A West Virginia woman faces child abuse charges after one of her children reported that she kicked him “in the privates” and struck him with a 2×4 paddle, resulting in bruises on his shoulder, chest, and back.

The accused, 32-year-old Courtney Crites, resides in Barbour County with her five children and her boyfriend, according to the criminal complaint. The state police became involved in this potential abuse case on January 1, although the origin of the report remains unspecified in the documents.

The children involved were interviewed on January 8 and 9 at the Child Advocacy Center in Harrison County, where investigators reviewed footage of these interviews.

The child who raised the allegations, referred to as PC, described how Crites “kicked him, hit him, and screamed at him.”

According to the complaint, PC stated that Crites kicked him in the privates around two months prior. He further explained that he was punished for not putting away his clothes “properly” and that Crites frequently used a paddle, which she dubbed “the attitude adjuster.”

Courtney Crites by kc wildmoon

“PC described that Ms. Crites had pushed him outside in the freezing cold, eventually letting him back in before striking him with the paddle breaking it.”

He showed the size of the paddle to be about 2 inches wide and 2 inches tall and about 2 feet long.

He said the bruises she left on his body lasted for about two months. He further said that she was kick him as she walked by when she was mad.

The boy, whose age was not given, told staff at the Child Advocacy Center that he was “scared to death” to go back and live with Crites.

Crites was charged with three counts of child abuse creating risk of injury and was booked into the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on a $100,000 bond, West Virginia Metro News reported.