Jennifer Hand, 33, pleaded guilty to allowing her 10-year-daughter to be impregnated by her 35-year-old boyfriend, Nicholas Thrash.
Here are five things to know about Hand and the sexual abuse case:
In 2015, Hand began dating Thrash, then 32 years old.
Hand, Thrash and the child lived in Georgia in 2016. That year, Thrash began molesting the girl, who was 8 years old at the time. After child welfare investigators in Georgia became aware of the abuse, Hand, Thrash and the child moved to Marion, Indiana.
The sex abuse continued in Marion, Indiana.
The girl, now 12, told authorities that Thrash had sex with her up to 15 times while in Marion. The girl became pregnant at 10 years old.
Hand ignored the sex abuse and attempted to hide the child’s pregnancy.
In May 2017, Hand discovered that her daughter was pregnant while she was trying on dresses. Although the mother knew that Thrash was the father of her daughter’s child, she told the young girl to tell people that she was impregnated by a classmate.
Police caught up to Thrash after Hand took the girl to get an abortion.
Hand took the child to an abortion clinic, but the clinic turned the child away stating that she was too young. Nurses at the clinic notified the police. Hand was arrested on May 16, 2017, and Thrash was captured one day later. During the trial, Thrash claimed that Hand took his sperm and placed it inside of the young girl.
Hand and Thrash will be in prison for a long time.
Hand pleaded guilty to neglect, aiding child molestation and assisting a criminal and will spend the next 20 years in prison. Thrash will serve 100 years behind bars after being convicted. The girl, 12, gave birth to a baby boy in September 2017. She is now in the custody of the state undergoing an intense mental health therapy. Hand will not be able to see her daughter until a psychologist deems the girl mentally capable of a reunion.
