In Kansas City, Missouri, a tragic incident has led to the arrest and charging of Mariah Thomas, a 26-year-old mother, in connection with the death of her 1-month-old infant. The prosecutor’s office announced on Saturday that Thomas is facing a Class A felony charge, specifically first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, about the untimely demise of her baby.
Jackson County prosecutor Jean Peters Baker expressed gratitude towards first responders and prosecutors involved in the case while acknowledging the somber nature of the tragedy in a press release, stating, “We acknowledge the gruesome nature of this tragedy and the loss of this precious life weights our hearts. We trust the criminal justice system to respond appropriately to these awful circumstances.”
The incident unfolded last Friday when police officers responded to a distress call at a residence in the Manheim Park neighborhood of Kansas City around 1:30 p.m. local time. The call reported a nonbreathing infant. Upon arrival, officers discovered the infant victim with apparent burn wounds, as outlined in court documents obtained by ABC News. The Kansas City Fire Department was summoned and pronounced the 1-month-old dead at the scene.
According to court records, Mariah Thomas informed investigators that she was putting her child down for a nap and inadvertently placed the infant in the oven instead of the crib. The court documents also reveal a statement from the infant’s grandfather, to whom Thomas allegedly confessed, saying, “I thought I put [infant’s name redacted] in her crib, and I accidentally put her in the oven.”
Currently, court records do not indicate whether Thomas has legal representation. If convicted of the Class A felony charge, she could potentially face a sentence ranging from 10 years to life in prison by Missouri state law.
