15-year-old girl accuses Cedar Rapids woman of abuse involving hammers and screwdrivers

CEDAR RAPIDS - Police arrested a 46-year-old woman Tuesday after a 15-year-old girl walked into the Cedar Rapids Police Department lobby and reported the woman repeatedly had abused her.

According to the criminal complaint, the girl told police that Mary Jane Jackson Thomas of Cedar Rapids had subjected her to several incidents of abuse spanning April 1 to Oct. 11.

'(The girl) described several different incidents in which the defendant used a hammer and an electrical cord to beat her and a screwdriver to stab and completely penetrate her wrist,” the complaint states. 'She also reported the defendant would bite and scratch her in the face.”

The girl was taken to Mercy Medical Center for treatment, police said. While there, 'the medical staff noted she had suffered a broken wrist, fractured cheekbone and scarring to her face and body,” which were consistent with the girl's story of repeated abuse.

While being interviewed, police said Jackson Thomas admitted to the abuse.

Jackson Thomas faces four counts of willful injury causing bodily injury, a Class C felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of $1,000 to $10,000.

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