TOPEKA, Kan. — A Eudora woman who was convicted of murder in the death of a boy at her day care should get a new trial because her attorney during the trial was ineffective, the Kansas Court of Appeals court ruled Friday.
The court overturned the conviction of Carrody Buchhorn, 47, and sent it back to the Douglas County District Court for a new trial.
The Douglas County District Attorney's Office plans to appeal the ruling to the Kansas Supreme Court.
The appeals court said Buchhorn's attorney did not adequately question a coroner's ruling that 9-month-old Oliver "Ollie" Ortiz died from a blow to a head at the Sunshine Kids Group Daycare Home in Eudora. The court noted the conviction hinged on the coroner's finding and no other evidence connected Buchhorn to the baby's death.
Buchhorn was convicted of second-degree murder in the boy's September 2016 death. She was sentenced to more than 10 years in prison.
The coroner, Dr. Erick Mitchell, ruled the boy died from a fractured skill caused by a forceful enough incident that he was quickly unresponsive and died within minutes.
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Annual homicide details and data for the Kansas City area are available through the KSHB 41 News Homicide Tracker, which was launched in 2015. Read the KSHB 41 News Mug Shot Policy.
