Woman’s Boyfriend Admitted To Child Abuse But Didn’t Go To Prison; Mother Served 15 Years In Prison For Not Reporting Him

A woman named Tondalao Hall was arrested after her boyfriend left her baby girl with broken ribs. Hall didn’t hurt the child but still served 15 years over the abuse.

Hall, now 35, was released Friday from the Mabel Bassett Correctional Center in McLoud, Oklahoma.

Finally reunited with her family, she tearfully hugged her children, her siblings, and her many friends who had been waiting for her after her 15-year bid.

Back In 2004, Hall and her then-boyfriend, Robert Braxton, were arrested on child abuse charges after she took two of her youngest children to the hospital. Her 3-month-old daughter had broken ribs and a broken femur, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma, which is representing Hall.

In 2006, after serving two years in county jail, Braxton pleaded guilty to two counts of abuse. He was then sentenced but given probation and released from custody, online court records show.

Hall, however, received a much stiffer sentence. She pleaded guilty to enabling child abuse and was sentenced to a total of 30 years in prison, records show.

Authorities said she failed to tell police about her boyfriend’s abuse.

Hall was denied commutation back in 2018. But last month, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board voted in favor of recommending the commutation of Hall’s sentence.

A spokesperson for the Department of Corrections said, Gov. Kevin Stitt, approved the request on Thursday, leading the way to her release on Friday morning.

“First and foremost, I want to thank God for making a way and for keeping me safe and sane during this season of my life,” Hall said in a statement released Thursday prior to her release from prison.

“Secondly, for all the people God has placed in my life, my children and my family for sticking by me. Time and space cannot accommodate the list of people who have loved, helped, and supported me through all of this, so, to everyone who has, thank you, and God bless you!”

Hall’s release comes days after hundreds of inmates in Oklahoma prisons were released in the largest mass commutation in US history. More than 460 non-violent inmates were released before their original sentences were over.

As she walked to a car reunited with and surrounded by her family and attorneys, Hall said her only immediate plans were spending time with her children. At some point in the future, though, Hall added, she would like to find a way to help other incarcerated women.