A Northern Kentucky woman awaits sentencing after her guilty plea to a charge of severely beating her 1-year old son, which led to the child’s death.
Stacey Schuchart of Dayton, Kentucky, 32, pleaded guilty to a single count of murder last week.
She previously pleaded not guilty in November of 2019. The Campbell County Commonwealth Attorney’s Office recommended a 35-year prison sentence, with the possibility for parole eligibility after 20 years served. The sentencing hearing is set for March 29 at noon.
According to court documents filed in the Campbell County Circuit Court, emergency services were called on Friday, Aug. 19, 2019, and dispatched to 401 5th Ave. in Dayton for an injured child.
Schuchart reported that her 18-month old boy had hit his head on their microwave. When paramedics arrived, the child was believed to be in full cardiac and respiratory arrest, according to court records. The child was removed from the home so the responding paramedics could perform resuscitation.
First responders believed the child had lacerations that had scarred over from previous beatings, court records said. The child also had visible scars of varying colors located across his body. The child was transported to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. After multiple unsuccessful attempts to save his life, the child was pronounced dead.
Schuchart said the only other people present in the home at the time of the injuries were herself and her 3-month old daughter. Court filings show the child’s father, Sean Buttery, was at work in Kenton County at the time of the incident. Schuchart claimed the last person to have access to her child besides herself and Buttery was Schuchart’s father, when he babysat the child on the afternoon of Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2019.
The coroner who performed the autopsy on the child found significant traumatic injury that were inconsistent with Schuchart’s claim that her child hit his head on a microwave, records show. The child did have a bruise on his forehead, although the injury was determined to have played no role in the child’s death. The coroner reported the injuries to the child were unlike any she had ever seen. The child’s trauma levels were more consistent with that of a serious car accident, the coroner reported.
The child sustained at least four fractures to his pelvis, two in his front and two in his back, as well as a fractured arm. The coroner reported the child’s injuries were a result of significant force being delivered to his torso while he was in contact with a flat surface, consistent with him being stomped.
The coroner believed the child was “beaten to death” and ruled the cause of death as homicidal violence. The medical examiner stated that a toddler would’ve been incapable of delivering the type of force necessary to cause such extreme injuries, officially ruling out the possibility the daughter inflicted them.
The children were illegally in the care of Schuchart for nearly a month. Court documents show Schuchart’s children were previously removed from her home and placed in temporary custody by court order.
Court documents show that Buttery had left early for work on the day of the incident, leaving Schuchart alone with the children. Buttery didn’t leave his workplace until after learning of his son’s injuries. The child was uninjured the night before according to court documents, ruling out Buttery as a suspect.
