By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

COLUMBIANA – A 25-year-old Alabaster woman will appear in court in early December after she was indicted on a charge of allegedly causing brain damage to her infant son.

A Shelby County grand jury returned a one-count indictment of aggravated child abuse against Caitlin Gregory Lunceford, who lists an address in the 500 block of Windsor Court in Alabaster, during its October term, according to court documents published on Oct. 28.

According to Lunceford’s indictment, she allegedly maltreated her infant son, who was about 2 months old and in Lunceford’s care at the time of the incident by “striking and/or hitting and punching and/or shaking the victim.” Lunceford’s arrest warrant claimed she caused “brain damage” to the infant during the Jan. 11 incident.

She is scheduled to appear in the Shelby County Courthouse on Dec. 1 at 8:30 a.m. for an arraignment in front of Judge Dan Reeves.

The Alabaster Police Department arrested Lunceford on Jan. 23 and charged her with aggravated child abuse, a Class B felony.

In February, Lunceford requested a previous court order denying her contact with her child be lifted, and requested she be allowed supervised visitation for one hour three nights per week. According to court documents, Reeves was scheduled to rule on Lunceford’s request to lift the no contact order, but as of Oct. 30, no ruling had been entered on the matter.

Along with the order requesting supervised visitation, Lunceford’s attorneys, Barry and Lara McCauley Alvis, also filed the results of a polygraph test Lunceford took on Feb. 19 with Sprayberry Polygraph Investigations.

During the test, the polygraphist, Jesse Sprayberry, asked Lunceford if she caused any of the infant’s injuries, if she deliberately injured the child in any way or if she ever lost her temper and injured the child. Lunceford answered “no” to all three questions, according to Sprayberry.

In a motion filed on Sept. 15, Lunceford’s attorneys, Barry and Lara Alvis, again requested Lunceford be granted supervised visitation with the child, claiming “The failure of the child to spend time with its mother can create significant long-term adverse consequences with the child.”

“The mother is requesting supervised visitation with her father who is a retired Marine and is ready, willing and able to supervise said visitation or any other suitable person,” read the Sept. 15 motion.