(August 12, 2008)--Ellis County Judge Greg Wilhelm signed an order Monday approving a jury verdict returned on June 30 that gives Jim Ehlers of Davenport, Iowa custody of his 6-year-old daughter and places the girl’s half-sisters, ages 8 and 4, in the custody of the state.
According to testimony in a month-long trial, the mother of the 6-year-old, Susan Hyde, had abused the girls, who were taken to the emergency room at least 150 times in four years and were treated for illnesses, such as cystic fibrosis, cerebral palsy and seizures, that they never had.
Doctors testified that Hyde's behavior correlated with psychological disorders known as Munchausen syndrome and Munchausen syndrome by proxy.
The illnesses describe people who create false symptoms of illness or by a parent making her child appear sick and possibly harming the child.