The Kansas City mother charged in the death of her child after allegedly placing the baby in an oven on Feb. 9 was granted a bond reduction in Jackson County court on Tuesday.
Mariah Thomas was charged on Feb. 10 with endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree, leading to the death of a child, which is a class A felony. Thomas was initially given a $200,000 bond with 10%, or $20,000, required to be posted.
Thomas appeared in court on Tuesday, Feb. 20, when her attorney argued her bond should be reduced because she has no criminal history, has family in town and has mental health concerns. The defense asked for Thomas' bond to be reduced to $20,000 with 10% secured, and if posted, Thomas would go on house arrest.
The state objected, stating Thomas is a flight risk given the severity of the charges. However, Jackson County Judge Travis R. Willingham granted Thomas a bond reduction to $100,000 with 10% secured. If Thomas posts bond, the state would require her to be on house arrest with GPS bracelet monitoring.
Court documents state Thomas told family members she accidentally placed her infant child in an oven instead of their crib on Feb. 9. in the 4100 block of Forest Avenue in the Midtown neighborhood of Kansas City, Missouri.
Officers responded to the residence around 1:24 p.m. on a report of an infant not breathing. When they arrived on scene, police and EMS located an individual holding the 1-month-old who was unresponsive and had burn wounds, per court documents. The baby was declared deceased at the scene.
Thomas and the baby lived with Thomas' parents at the Midtown residence.
Thomas is set to be back in court at 2 p.m. on March 4 for arraignment.
—
If you have any information about a crime, you may contact your local police department directly. But if you want or need to remain anonymous, you should contact the Greater Kansas City Crime Stoppers Tips Hotline by calling 816-474-TIPS (8477), submitting the tip online or through the free mobile app at P3Tips.com. Depending on your tip, Crime Stoppers could offer you a cash reward.
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.
