On January 19th, 2010, Deputies from Stone County responded to an address in Turkey Mountain Estates II in Shell Knob for the report of a suicidal female with a child. When they arrived at the location, they located a 19 yr old female with a 3 week old child lying on the bed with a heater next to them. The child was taken to Cox South where it is still in intensive care and in critical condition. The mother was taken to Cox South where she was treated and released back to the custody of Stone County Detectives.

Based on the living conditions at the residence and the critical condition of the infant when deputies arrived, the child was taken into state custody by the 39th Circuit Juvenile Office on the recommendation of the Stone County Sheriff's Office and Mo Division of Child Welfare.

The female, 19 yr old Jayde Nicole Kerns of Shell Knob Missouri, was transported back to Stone County where she remains incarcerated.

She has been charged with Endangering the Welfare of a Child 1st Degree, a Class C Felony with a $25,000 cash/surety bond.

Richard L Hill, Sheriff
Stone County