Broken Arrow Dad Arrested After Teen Ran To 'Safe Place' For Help

The father of a Broken Arrow teenager is behind bars after his daughter said he punched her in the face right after a youth shelter released her back to her father.

Broken Arrow police said the girl ran to a QuikTrip, which doubles as a local "Safe Place" for children in crisis, after she said she and her dad fought over grades.

Youth Services of Tulsa then picked up the teen and evaluated her.

After the daughter was released in the care of her father, she told police, when she got home her dad punched her in the face. She said she then waited for him to go to bed before calling officers for help.

Police said the teen took photos on her phone right after she was punched.

“The officer did observe some slight swelling and some redness on the victim, the juvenile victim's face,” said Corporal Leon Calhoun, BAPD.

Police arrested Kenneth Lynch on a complaint of child abuse. Officers also added a complaint of possession of drug paraphernalia after seeing a pipe and other items in the home.

Youth Services said 145 at risk youth used "Safe Places" to get help last year.

They said they can't comment directly on what happened to the Broken Arrow teen, but said they do their best when returning them to family members.

"No youth leaves our shelter without creating a safety plan - whether that's verbal or written - where they know how to access help if there's a crisis or if their safety becomes an issue," said Tania Pryce with Youth Services of Tulsa.

Lynch denies ever hitting his daughter who is now in the care of DHS.