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Gene Kennedy reporting A man charged in connection with the death of a 5-month-old baby made his first court appearance today.
Police say Raymond Chesley neglected the 5-month-old baby. The child died after she swallowed methamphetamine.
The baby's mother is also charged in connection with her child's death, but it was her boyfriend who was in the courtroom in West Jordon this morning.
Today was the first time Chesley has seen a judge since police put him in jail three months ago. His lawyer is trying to get him out of jail on pre-trial release.
Chesley stood before the judge in a beige jail jumpsuit and hardly said a word. The charges against him are very serious: Child endangerment and desecrating a dead body.
Police say Chesley and his girlfriend, Mary Lacey, neglected the woman's 5 month-old baby. The infant swallowed a bag of methamphetamine. She died and police say the two suspects never called 911 after the girl ate the drugs or while she violently reacted to the meth.
Before the child died, her father, Cole Morrow, removed her from the mother's home. But the state forced the father to return his daughter then charged him with burglary and assault.
Eight days later, his baby died.
Gregory Hawkins, Attorney, Hawkins & Sorensen (Last Week): "Here's a man who steps up to defend a child, the child is killed, and the state has the gall to charge him with a crime."
In fact, the father was scheduled to be in court today but did not appear because the charges against him were dropped.
