Nicoletti pleads guilty

Bayfield County woman has pleaded guilty to charges of physically abusing a teenage boy and falsely imprisoning him.

Brianne Nicoletti, now 35, was convicted with child abuse-intentionally causing great bodily harm, neglecting a child (consequence is great bodily harm), causing harm to a child and false imprisonment. Six additional charges involving reckless endangerment, neglect, abuse, and false imprisonment were dismissed but read onto the record.

The charges carry a maximum penalty of roughly 70 years in prison, Circuit Court Judge John P. Anderson said during the plea hearing. Nicoletti originally pleaded no contest, but Anderson did not accept that. After conferring with her attorney Kenneth Ryder, Nicoletti became emotional and pleaded guilty to the four charges.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 15.

The criminal complaint accused Nicoletti of feeding the boy only once daily — not at all some days. He was locked in his bedroom for long periods of time, struck with metal objects and prevented him from going to the bathroom when locked in his room.

The case began after Child Protective Services contacted the Bayfield County Sheriff’s Office. The call was prompted by a report from another child in Nicoletti’s care, who said the victim was grounded and that there was a lock on his door with him inside.

Investigators went to Nicoletti’s residence and one recognized the boy. He noticed the boy had lost weight and had “sunken cheeks/eyes and was emaciated.” He also had several wounds on the boy’s face, hands and neck.

They took the boy to Tamarack health, where he was later admitted due to concerns about his condition. Staff found he had lost 17 pounds since July 2022, weighing in at 70 pounds and was “well below normal growth chart.” There was evidence of muscle wasting between his ribs and two open wounds on his back.

When asked about the wounds, the boy said he developed an inexplicable behavior of sneaking and hiding food. The victim told investigators he was locked in his room a lot because he couldn’t be trusted around the house because he was stealing food.

In a later interview with Marshfield Clinic Forensic and Service Coordinator Amber Niehaus, the boy said that he was generally given one meal a day, fives times per week. That meal was usually cereal with water or dry. On the remaining two days a week, he received no food at all.

The boy went on to say his relationship with Nicoletti got worse over the summer of 2023. The boy described sneaking around the house and taking food. Over time this became the only food he was permitted to eat. That evolved to being locked in his room on a regular basis with even less food. If caught trying to take food, the boy said Nicoletti would sometimes strike his hands with a metal hollow tube.

There had been concerns reported previously. In October the boy arrived at school with a black eye, which was reported. Later that month a caller was concerned with the boy not being in school and his substantial weight loss.

After that report was made, Nicoletti pulled the boy out of school and enrolled him in online school. When asked why he was pulled from school, the boy said school officials were concerned about him and gave him food at school upsetting Nicoletti. In November 2023, when he had taken a can of refried beans, Nicoletti reportedly caught him eating, grabbed the can and smashed the rough edges onto his face. That incident left scars visible were during the Jan. 15 interview.

On Nov. 23, the boy ran away from home because he didn’t feel safe and knew he wasn’t getting enough to eat. He was found by Nicoletti’s boyfriend and brought back home to be locked in his bedroom.

Nicoletti then cut up parts of the boy’s winter coat so that he would be more exposed to the elements if he tried to leave again, the boy said.

The boy was receiving counseling during this time at NorthLakes Community Clinic. In April, a report was made to the Bayfield County DHS concerning psychological abuse by Nicoletti toward the victim. The reporter was concerned because the boy was scared to say how he was truly feeling and that the boy is psychologically damaged because nothing he does is ever good enough and is “grounded constantly”. Shortly after the report was made, Nicoletti stopped taking him to get counseling because the boy was being “dishonest.” The boy gained 30 pounds in the 26 days after he was removed from Nicoletti’s care.

Throughout the court process, Anderson said he has received numerous letters concerning the case, all of which he has ignored.

“We don’t sentence people in a public square. That’s my job. It’s a waste of time to try to influence me. When it’s all done, people can chastise me all they want.”