Tullahoma Mother and Man Facing Several Charges Including Child Endangerment

A Tullahoma mother has been arrested on multiple charges following an alleged abuse of her child Saturday.
Saundra Leah Waegner, 25, of East Grundy Street was charged with two counts of child endangerment, child abuse or neglect, manufacture/delivery/sell of controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. She is being held under a bond of $10,500.
Ethan James Payne, 23, also of East Grundy Street was arrested on the same charges and is being held under a bond of $10,900. Both are due to appear in Coffee County General Sessions Court March 5.
The arrest were made by Officer Cody Brandon Saturday afternoon.
In Brandon’s report he alleges that Waegner’s six year old son had a large bruise on his left check, a scratch mark over his left eye and ear, bruising from what appeared to be strangulation on the throat, a bruise on the right eye and a small circular bruising around the right and left wrist.
The boy told the officer that he tried to kiss his 3-year-old sister and when his mother found out she hit him. The child also alleged that Payne grabbed him around the throat.
Waegner first told the officer that the 3-year-old caused the bruises, but Officer Brandon advised her that that was untrue and how did he get his hands tied behind his back. She replied that she used a rope chain to place her son’s hand behind his back.
She defended her actions saying that the boy held his 3-year-old sister down and was trying to kiss her. She said that she struck him in the face and tied his hands behind his back to show him what jail was like. Waegner then threw the child onto his bed, breaking the bed into several pieces.
She stated that she strangled the child.
The mother told officers several times that Payne had nothing to do with the abuse, even though the child said he was.
While Officers Brandon, Chase Sons and Rocky Ruehling were in the residence they allegedly found four grams of marijuana, three glass pipes, rolling papers, scales and burnt marijuana in the bedroom. A jar was found with approximately 17 grams of marijuana in a closet.