Crime & Safety

Mom Arrested After Son Gets Tattoo

Take our Patch Poll on whether parents should be allowed to have their children inked.

A 31-year-old Acworth mom was arrested by the this week on a charge of misdemeanor child cruelty after getting her 10-year-old son a tattoo.

Now police are seeking the tattoo artist who did the illegal work, the Marietta Daily Journal reports.

Chuntera Napier, who lives on Bakers Grove Road, was booked into the early Wednesday and released a few hours later on a $1,000 bond, jail records show.

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She had allowed her son, Gaquan, to get a tattoo honoring his older brother, Malik, who died at age 12 after being hit by a car in Macon two years ago, according to WSB Channel 2.

Napier herself has a "Rest in Peace Malik" tattoo among several others, according to her jail booking report.

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She told Channel 2 she didn't know it was illegal for her son to get a tattoo, and it wasn't just a gift but something he wanted to remember his brother.

It is illegal in Georgia for anyone under 18 to be tattooed except for medical reasons.

Napier was arrested after someone at Gaquan's school noticed the tattoo on his arm and contacted authorities, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution said.

A Smyrna tattoo artist did the work, the AJC reported, although Napier is not helping police find the man, who also could face charges, police Maj. Wayne Dennard told the MDJ.

Should parents have the right to get their children tattoos? Take the Patch poll and post in the comments.


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