Trigg County woman sentenced to 23 years for death of infant son

A Trigg County woman was sentenced on Monday to 23 years in prison for the 2021 death of her infant son.

Thirty-year-old Shaylynn Curtis entered an Alford plea in the Caldwell County courthouse in response to charges of murder and abuse of a corpse.

Curtis was arrested on the abuse of a corpse charge the day after her 5-month-old son died. Police said Curtis had allegedly placed the baby in swaddling clothes and then put him in the attic of her house in Trigg County. Police said the mother did not make any effort to call 911 or otherwise get help for her infant from authorities or from a doctor. 

Friends of Curtis concerned for the child’s health phoned law enforcement asking for a welfare check. When police arrived, they said the boy had been dead for some 24 hours.

The additional murder charge was leveled after Kentucky State Police presented autopsy results to a grand jury. A medical examiner’s report allegedly showed that the baby died of acute methamphetamine intoxication, but there was no indication how the child ingested the drug. Whether Curtis transferred meth to her son via breastfeeding or some other means remains unclear.

WPKY reported that under the terms of the Alford plea, Curtis won't be eligible for parole for a minimum of 17 years served.