Oct. 26 (UPI) — The parents of an infant whose body was found rotting in a child swing in Iowa were charged with murder on Wednesday.
Cheyanne Renae Harris, 20, and Zachary Paul Koehn, 28, were arrested and charged with first-degree murder and child endangerment as the result of a two-month investigation after their 4-month-old son Sterling Daniel Koehn was found dead Aug. 30, the Courier reported.
Bail for the couple was set at $100,000 cash only and if convicted, the penalty for first degree murder is life in prison.
After receiving a 911 call, Chickasaw County Sheriff’s deputies arrived to find the child sitting in a powered swing in a separate bedroom from where Koehn, Harris and their older child slept, criminal complaints filed in court that were obtained by the Des Moines Register.
Court records show the infant weighed less than seven pounds and died of neglect.
“The facts of this case go far beyond neglect and show circumstances manifesting an extreme indifference to human life,” a Chickasaw County sheriff’s deputy wrote in court records.
Maggots were discovered in the boy’s clothing and skin, which a forensic entomologist studied to determine a timeline of the neglect.
“The study of the maggots growth and development indicated that the child had not had a diaper change, bath, or been removed from the seat in over a week,” the deputy wrote.
Authorities said the findings were inconsistent with the parent’s statements as the infant was “fine” when Harris fed him at 9 a.m. but was found dead at 11 or 11:30 a.m. when she returned to check on him.
The Iowa State Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death was a homicide with the cause of death being failure to provide critical care.
