Daycare Worker Claims She Raped Babies to Please Her Boyfriend

Koon pled guilty in the Lorain County Court of Common Pleas to four counts each of rape, kidnapping, and pandering obscenity involving a minor, reports the Lorain County Chronicle-Telegram. Koon was 25 when she assaulted the four children, which included a one-year-old and a two-year-old.

She also pled guilty to a slew of other charges and now faces 15 years to life in prison.

Dan Wightman, Koon's attorney, told the Chronicle-Telegram that Koon abused the children under orders from her boyfriend, James Osborne, 37, who pled guilty in the same court to four counts of complicity to rape and related offenses. "We are hopeful that at the end of the day the judge recognizes that Heather to a great extent felt compelled to be involved in this activity," Wightman said. "But she does have a lot of remorse about it."

Osborne was already serving eight years for violating the terms of his 2011 probation agreement, which stemmed from a child porn conviction.

News reports about the case indicate that the children involved were each less than five years old when the 2013 abuses occurred.

Koon worked at ABC Kidz Child Care in Elyria, about a half-hour west of Cleveland. A representative from ABC Kidz Child Care declined to comment on the case.

The abuse was discovered in 2014 when deputies found a sexually explicit photo on Osborne's iPhone. Osborne had been barred from using the web after his child porn conviction in 2011.

Dr. Arne Graff, medical director of the Mayo Clinic's Child and Family Advocacy Center, told Broadly it is not unusual to have child sexual abuse discovered by happenstance. In Elyria some of the involved children were too young. When they can speak, children are often too embarrassed or ashamed to report abuse, Graff said.

"It is more common than not for children to have delayed disclosure," said Graff. "It's important for parents to talk to kids about their bodies and let them know that they are private. It's also important for kids to be able to identify their body parts by the correct terms."

Graff, of Minnesota's Mayo Clinic, also noted that parents must train themselves to react positively to children who come to them when something seems wrong.

"When kids give disclosure it's important to reinforce that's a wonderful thing," he said.

Graff stressed that parents should also realize that there are resources for helping children move beyond abuse and lead normal lives.

"The vast majority of kids do very well," he said. "And parents need to understand that the child is not the only victim. The parents often experience self-blame and a lack of trust [in other adults]."

Candice Lopez, director of the National Sexual Assault Hotline, RAINN, told Broadly that talking to kids every day and listening for verbal clues such as new words or talk about "secrets," is a positive way to monitor children's interactions with other adults. Avoiding touch or not wanting to undress are among warning signs that parents should be aware of, Lopez says.

"If a parent suspects something but doesn't know how to talk to a child or where to turn, call a sexual abuse hotline or a child advocacy hotline," she said. "They will have great suggestions for next steps no matter the age of the [possible victim]."

To report suspected abuse, call the National Sexual Abuse Hotline, 800-656-HOPE.