After an Alabama foster care child was discovered dead five hours after being left in her car, a Birmingham lady was charged with a crime.
In connection with the July 22 death of 3-year-old Ketorrius KJ Starkes Jr., the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office said Friday that it has issued a felony warrant for 54-year-old Kela Stanford.
Stanford is accused of leaving a child unsupervised in a car. Stanford was once a transport driver for The Covenant Services.
On Friday, she was arrested at 7:04 a.m. and freed at 8:14 a.m. after posting a $30,000 bond.
The D.A.’s office released a statement saying, “This is a terrible tragedy that was completely avoidable and unnecessary.”
The Amiyah White Act charge forbids leaving a kid or an incompetent person alone in a car in a way that puts them at an undue risk of harm or injury.
Fines may be imposed for violations, and depending on the extent of the harm, the offense may be converted to a felony or misdemeanor if physical harm is sustained. It is a Class B felony in this instance.
A law establishing criminal sanctions for leaving a kid under the age of seven or an adult who is incapable of caring for themselves in a car was passed by the Legislature in 2013.
Amiyah White, a 2-year-old girl who passed away after being abandoned in a Mobile van, inspired the name of the statute.
That Tuesday, Stanford had picked KJ up from daycare and brought him to DHR in Bessemer to see his biological father.
Stanford was supposed to drop KJ off at his daycare at the end of the visit, but she claimed to have become distracted, forgotten he was in her car, run a few errands, and then left for home. She said that until KJ’s foster mother, who had been his foster parent from birth, contacted to ask for him and Birmingham police discovered him dead, she was unaware that he was still in her parked, fancy automobile.
Lawmakers and the community are furious over KJ’s passing and are demanding responsibility and openness from DHR. On Tuesday, Governor Kay Ivey declared that the child’s death was the consequence of egregious and abhorrent neglect.
According to lawyer Courtney French, who is defending KJ’s family, this is a parent’s worst fear. This tragedy could have been avoided.
A preliminary assessment indicates that the automobile in which KJ was confined had an internal temperature that was probably more than 140 degrees.
The funeral for KJ will take place at Sixth Avenue Beulah Baptist Church on Saturday.
On Friday night, across the street from the DHR headquarters in Bessemer, there will be a candlelight memorial and balloon release in his honor.
KJ, who had lived with his foster family since birth, was due to see Starkes Sr. at the DHR office in Bessemer on the day of his death.
The transport driver was supposed to take KJ back to daycare at the conclusion of the visit.
Stanford explained what transpired during her phone conversation with Ketorrius Starkes Sr. in a Facebook post apologizing for the call.
Because I was contacted and told I didn’t have a case, I got distracted and went to eat. When I walked out, I thought, “Well, I’m done for the day, I can go home,” rather than heading to the left to daycare.
She informed KJ’s father and an unnamed woman who was also on the phone with Starkes that I had chosen to stay home rather than go to the daycare.
I also didn’t realize he was back there. I sincerely apologize.
“Baby you got us sick over here,” the woman on the other end of the call said to Stanford. We are unable to breathe. A three-year-old was left in the car by you. He was unable to protect himself. When you knew there was a youngster present from the beginning, you were supposed to check the back seat, she added.
“There’s nothing you can say to cheer him up,” she remarked.
I’m not attempting to cheer him up. “I am not,” said Stanford.
I can’t say anything that will cheer him up. I’m so sorry. I apologize; words cannot begin to describe how sorry I am.
Stanford was informed by the woman, This baby died in your automobile after you left him in your hot ass and went inside your house, where you were comfortable. He choked. He had nothing, no assistance. You didn’t consider checking the rear seat?
“I didn’t mean that,” Stanford said. I would never have done that to your son, I swear.
Stanford clarified that her husband’s car was in the garage, so she parked on the driveway.
She said that it wasn’t until the boy’s foster mom called to ask for the child that she realized KJ was in the back seat.
According to Stanford, I wouldn’t have killed any children.
The car was locked, and the windows were rolled up, according to Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates.
According to Yates, KJ was in the vehicle from 12:30 to 5:30 p.m. At 6:03 p.m., he was declared dead on the spot.
Family lawyer French responded, “None of it makes sense,” when asked about the transport driver’s call to Starkes.
According to French, KJ was picked up from daycare by Stanford at 9 a.m. for a supervised visit with Starkes, which concluded around 11:30 a.m.
According to French, the employee chose to purchase at a tobacco store and pick up food for her family instead of taking the child back to daycare right after.
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