A Bay City woman pleaded not guilty in Pierce County Circuit Court Aug. 13 to two felony second-degree sexual assault of a child charges.

Taeler Lynn Damewood, 18, was ordered to pay $10,000 cash bond Aug. 7. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison and/or fines up to $10,000.

According to the complaint:

Between April 19 2026 and July 10, 2026, Damewood allegedly had sexual contact with a 14-year-old female at a Bay City home.

One victim stated that during the first assault, Damewood was talking about reading “smut books” and that characters in those books are frequently handcuffed. She said Damewood put handcuffs on her, sat on her legs and began assaulting her without her permission.

She said the second assault happened in the same house, but her friend was there and they were allegedly playing Truth or Dare with Damewood. She said Damewood blindfolded her and assaulted her more aggressively than the first time while her friend sat on the floor. The girl eventually told her grandmother what had happened.

When police interviewed Damewood, she denied all allegations but eventually changed her story. She told officers she used the handcuffs on the victim because the girl wanted her to. She denied trying to enact scenes from smut books but acknowledged she had romance novels in her room. She accused the girl of drinking wine, vaping and trying to lay all the blame on her.

Damewood has a status conference scheduled at 2:45 p.m. Sept. 16. She remains in custody at Pierce County Jail.