A seven-year-old girl in Ohio went to school and told her teacher something frightening: her father had put her in the dryer, then closed the door and turned it on. Steve McClairn, 36, gave a not guilty plea Wednesday in the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court and now faces two counts of endangering children, felonious assault, kidnapping and domestic violence. He is in jail on a $250,000 bond with a pre-trial set for January 12 that could result in up to 33 years in jail.
When a counselor heard the girl’s story of the December 19 attack, children’s services were contacted and charges were filed. The girl has a condition that stunts her growth; she is only about three feet tall and weighs approximately 39 pounds. The saddest part of this story is that it’s not the first time she’s been put in the dryer. Prosecutors say the horrific act is McClairn’s idea of punishment when he asked his daughter a question and didn’t like her answer.
Mike O’Malley, the first assistant to prosecutor Bill Mason finds the behavior inexplicable, stating, “There’s no explaining this type of activity, why any individual would place any human being or any animal or anything in a dryer is unexplainable and to a normal thinking person, there’s no explanation and obviously this man has issues.” He continued by saying that, “If you’re capable of putting your child in a clothes dryer you’re probably capable of a lot of horrible things.” O’Malley is right: McClairn’s lengthy Ohio rap sheet includes assaults, robbery, burglary, having guns after a felony conviction, drug trafficking and attempted kidnapping.
