Police: Cobb County mother forced child to strip naked on school property

COBB COUNTY, Ga. - A Cobb County mother is facing child cruelty, among other charges, after police say she forced her child to strip down naked and walk through a elementary school parking lot on Halloween morning as punishment for getting in trouble.

Joyce Sweetheart Cole was arrested and has since been released from the Cobb County Jail on a $5,000 bond, according to jail records. A spokesperson for the Cobb County Police Department said Cole's three children, including the victim, are now in state custody as a result of the incident.

Officers said Cole told her son she would embarrass him in front of people if he got into trouble at school again, according to the criminal warrant obtained by FOX 5 News. The warrant goes on to say she struck the boy in the head with an open hand while walking behind him in the parking lot. Police told FOX 5 there were several witnesses to the incident at the school, and they tried to intervene but were unable to stop the situation. Police said the child was accused of kicking another student at the school before his mother arrived on campus, marking the second time she came to the school to address a behavioral issue in a month.

Cole and her husband spoke briefly with FOX 5's Marissa Mitchell Friday evening. Both declined to speak about the incident, but said they have hired an attorney who could address the issue at a later date.