The Bulloch County mother facing charges for child cruelty has entered a guilty plea.
Brittany Fields was arrested by the Statesboro Police Department in December 2024 on felony Cruelty to Children charges after law enforcement officers alleged that she willfully deprived the children of “necessary sustenance to the extent that the child’s health or well-being is jeopardized.” The warrants listed eight children aged fourteen and younger, all of whom shared the same last name as Fields.
Detectives with SPD told media outlets in December that they were initially called to a home for a squatting complaint. Upon arrival, they found several children unsupervised and without heat. They called the conditions “abhorrent,” noting that the children had been out of food for several days.
Fields was arrested on December 19 and her children were placed in a DFCS-approved home in another county. In February 2025, Judge Michael Muldrew set bond for Fields in the amount of $15,000 and she bonded out a few days later. A grand jury indicted her in October 2025 on thirteen felony counts of Cruelty to Children in the 1st degree and she remained out on bond as her case made its way through the court process.
In mid-April, Fields agreed to a negotiated plea in which all thirteen counts were reduced to Cruelty to Children in the 2nd degree.
Difference Between Two Degrees
Cruelty to Children in the 1st degree – when such person willfully deprives the child of necessary sustenance to the extent that the child’s health or well-being is jeopardized. Carries a sentence of 5-20 years.
Cruelty to Children in the 2nd degree – when such person with criminal negligence causes a child under the age of 18 cruel or excessive physical or mental pain. Carries a sentence of 1-10 years.
Terms of the Plea
According to court documents, Fields entered a guilty plea on all thirteen counts. Each of the first degree Cruelty to Children counts were amended to Cruelty to Children in the Second Degree.
Fields was sentenced to:
- 60 days in jail with credit for time served in the Bulloch County Jail from December 19, 2024 until February 14, 2025.
- 170-180 days in a Probation Detention Center – suspended
- 10 years probation for each of the thirteen counts to be served concurrently
- Pay a $1,000 fine – suspended
- complete a substance abuse evaluation and complete any recommended treatment
- Avoid alcohol and drugs while on probation and avoid establishments, residences, and vehicles where alcohol and/or illegal drugs are present
- Abide by a curfew set by probation
Fields must also follow all requirements put in place by the Georgia Department of Family & Children Services, though those terms and conditions were not outlined in sentencing paperwork. Fields must also pay $105 for the services of the public defender.
As a convicted felon, Fields is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition and must submit a DNA sample.
Public court documents and sworn affidavits unrelated to this case, show that Fields has a lengthy history on the radar of the Georgia Department of Human Services. In 2016, the state agency sought recovery of child support payments for six of Fields’ children who were, at the time, in the custody and care of someone else. The court ordered $97.17 per month per child, for a total of $583 per month. Fields has had more children since that time.
