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Teen Accused Of Tainting Food

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By LISA A. DAVIS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 22, 2008

DADE CITY - Lenna Mercer-Goodwin didn't want to believe her 16-year-old daughter was intentionally using her food allergies against her, she told Pasco County deputies.

But she couldn't ignore the signs: several "unexplained" allergic reactions after eating foods to which she didn't normally have an aversion.

Her husband, William Goodwin, saw the connections, too, and went to Pasco deputies Tuesday, sparking an investigation into his stepdaughter's possible connection with the strange incidents.

Goodwin told deputies he thought his stepdaughter might be tampering with his wife's food.

On Tuesday, deputies arrested Christina "KiKi" Shehow at school after the teen told them she put seasoned salt on her mother's food, knowing she was allergic to some of the ingredients.

Deputies say Christina told them she is not happy with her home life but didn't mean to hurt her mother.

"She's still pretty much in shock," Goodwin said Wednesday about his wife. "It's very emotional."

On May 7, Mercer-Goodwin, 39, had a reaction so bad she had to use an EpiPen, a shot containing epinephrine that is used to counteract allergic reactions, according to a sheriff's office report.

Mercer-Goodwin was at her other daughter's baseball practice and had to leave early because of the allergic reaction, the report stated. Shehow had to stick her mother with the pen because Mercer-Goodwin was too ill to do it herself.

Before the game, according to the report, Shehow and her 11-year-old sister made dinner.

At some point, a report states, the 11-year-old, Samantha, saw her sister sprinkle seasoned salt on their mother's food but was too scared to warn her.

Her sister told her she would "beat her up until she was dead" if she told, according to the report. Samantha told deputies that her sister is "very mean" to her and often slaps her and pushes her around and makes her do her chores.

Samantha said her sister has been upset with their mother because her cell phone was taken away because she was texting too much, the report states.

Mercer-Goodwin told deputies she has had a difficult time with her older daughter since divorcing the child's father. When Shehow is at her father's, Mercer-Goodwin told deputies, she doesn't have to do chores.

Shehow, of 39623 Mercer Road, Lacoochee, was taken to the Juvenile Assessment Center in Land O' Lakes and booked on a felony charge of aggravated domestic violence. She was later released to her biological father's custody because she isn't supposed to have contact with her mother or sister, Goodwin said Wednesday.

The Pasco-Pinellas State Attorney's Office is set to review the case .

Reporter Lisa A. Davis can be reached at (727) 815-1083 or ldavis@tampatrib.com.

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