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Katheryn Nycole Dale, the mother of the late 19-month-old Vincent Hill, pleaded no contest to charges of abuse of a child and aggravated endangerment of a child Thursday in Harvey County District Court.
Hill was found unresponsive March 27 at the home of Dale and her boyfriend, Chad Carr. The child was pronounced dead at Newton Medical Center a short time later.
Harvey County Attorney David Yoder said Dale admitted to injuring Vincent by jabbing a fork in his mouth, grabbing his face hard enough to bruise him and slapping him in the face on March 25.
Dale told police she was upset at the way the child was eating.
Dale also admitted she left Vincent alone with Carr, knowing he had a history of violence with the child.
Dale told police she had seen Carr hit Hill and shove rags, cloth and a shirt in the toddler’s mouth. An autopsy revealed Hill died of suffocation.
“She knowingly placed the child in a situation in which life and body were in danger,” Yoder said during the court hearing. “That meets the statutory requirements for aggravated endangerment of a child that day.”
Carr has been charged with murder in Hill’s death.
Although it is not spelled out in the plea agreement, Yoder said it is his expectation Dale will testify in the case against Carr.
Carr will be in court for a pretrial hearing on Aug. 18.
Both the charges to which Dale pleaded are felonies.
A sentence on a child abuse charge can be 31 to 136 months in prison, and a sentence on an aggravated endangerment of a child charge can be 5 to 17 months.
Although sentencing recommendations will be determined by an extensive court services background check, Yoder said he did not think Dale had a prior criminal record.
This means Dale would fall in what is called a border box for sentencing. She likely would face 31 to 38 months incarceration on the first charge and five to eight months on the second charge.
It will be up to Judge Joe Dickinson to decide if Dale will serve probation or prison time.
“It could go either way,” Yoder said. “The state has made no recommendations. It is entirely up to the judge.”
Dale also will be ordered to attend child abuse awareness and anger management classes.
Dale’s sentencing is set for Sept. 30.
Two counts of aggravated battery against Dale were dropped Thursday.
Yoder said one count of aggravated battery stemmed from investigators’ belief Dale had caused some of Hill’s injuries on March 27.
However, Yoder said further investigation lead police to believe all the injuries from March 27 were caused by Carr.
The other charge was connected to the fork incident. Yoder said if Dale had been convicted by a jury, she would have been sentenced on the more specific abuse of a child charge.
Dale’s attorney again requested Dale be released on her own recognizance. The judge denied this request but reduced Dale’s bond from $50,000 to $25,000.
Katheryn Nycole Dale, the mother of the late 19-month-old Vincent Hill, pleaded no contest to charges of abuse of a child and aggravated endangerment of a child Thursday in Harvey County District Court.
Hill was found unresponsive March 27 at the home of Dale and her boyfriend, Chad Carr. The child was pronounced dead at Newton Medical Center a short time later.
Harvey County Attorney David Yoder said Dale admitted to injuring Vincent by jabbing a fork in his mouth, grabbing his face hard enough to bruise him and slapping him in the face on March 25.
Dale told police she was upset at the way the child was eating.
Dale also admitted she left Vincent alone with Carr, knowing he had a history of violence with the child.
Dale told police she had seen Carr hit Hill and shove rags, cloth and a shirt in the toddler’s mouth. An autopsy revealed Hill died of suffocation.
“She knowingly placed the child in a situation in which life and body were in danger,” Yoder said during the court hearing. “That meets the statutory requirements for aggravated endangerment of a child that day.”
Carr has been charged with murder in Hill’s death.
Although it is not spelled out in the plea agreement, Yoder said it is his expectation Dale will testify in the case against Carr.
Carr will be in court for a pretrial hearing on Aug. 18.
Both the charges to which Dale pleaded are felonies.
A sentence on a child abuse charge can be 31 to 136 months in prison, and a sentence on an aggravated endangerment of a child charge can be 5 to 17 months.
Although sentencing recommendations will be determined by an extensive court services background check, Yoder said he did not think Dale had a prior criminal record.
This means Dale would fall in what is called a border box for sentencing. She likely would face 31 to 38 months incarceration on the first charge and five to eight months on the second charge.
It will be up to Judge Joe Dickinson to decide if Dale will serve probation or prison time.
“It could go either way,” Yoder said. “The state has made no recommendations. It is entirely up to the judge.”
Dale also will be ordered to attend child abuse awareness and anger management classes.
Dale’s sentencing is set for Sept. 30.
Two counts of aggravated battery against Dale were dropped Thursday.
Yoder said one count of aggravated battery stemmed from investigators’ belief Dale had caused some of Hill’s injuries on March 27.
However, Yoder said further investigation lead police to believe all the injuries from March 27 were caused by Carr.
The other charge was connected to the fork incident. Yoder said if Dale had been convicted by a jury, she would have been sentenced on the more specific abuse of a child charge.
Dale’s attorney again requested Dale be released on her own recognizance. The judge denied this request but reduced Dale’s bond from $50,000 to $25,000.
