Mom Stephanie Broten, boyfriend Darnell Landrum, forced girl to shave head, wear diaper, police say

FRIDLEY, MN -- A Minnesota couple is accused of shaving a 12-year-old girl's head and making her run down the street with a diaper on.

Police say the girl's mother, 38-year-old Stephanie Broten, and her boyfriend, 34-year-old Darnell Landrum, were trying to punish the girl for bringing home bad grades.

"We seen her running up and down the basketball court," said a witness . "They shaved her head. She was just crying because her parents wouldn't let her in."

The girl had a tank top on and was wearing a Depends diaper, according to police.

While this was happening, police said 50 to 100 people came out to watch. Two called 911 while a friend took pictures on his cell phone "to show police."

Classmate D'Angelo Williams, who took the photos, said he has since deleted them.

"The parents believed this was appropriate discipline for their daughter to teach her not to get bad grades at school," said Fridley Lt. Mike Monsrud.

Police said the couple was even confused when they were arrested.

"They were in the back seat of the squad car laughing and joking with each other," said Lt. Monsrud.  

Broten and Landrum have been charged with malicious punishment of a child.