Fort Hall woman sentenced to prison for causing the death of her 7-week-old baby with meth
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The following is a news release from the Idaho U.S. Attorney’s Office.
POCATELLO – Keisha Cody, 27, of Fort Hall, was sentenced to five years in federal prison for felony injury to a child, following the death of her seven-week-old baby boy on Dec. 10, 2019, at Fort Hall, U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit announced Tuesday.
According to court records, Cody admitted to recklessly causing the health of her child to be injured by willfully exposing the child to methamphetamine and causing the child to become malnourished, which resulted in the child’s death.
On Dec. 10, 2019, Fort Hall Police and an ambulance were called to Cody’s residence on the Fort Hall Reservation of the Shoshone‑Bannock Tribes because of a report of a child who was not breathing. A person staying at the residence that night told police she woke up about 9 a.m. and Cody was crying, stating her baby would not wake up. Emergency medical personnel performed life-saving measures on the child, but the seven-week-old boy was later declared dead.
An autopsy concluded the cause of death was malnutrition, and that the child had a significant level of methamphetamine in his blood, which contributed to his malnutrition and death. Cody admitted in an interview with the FBI that she used methamphetamine around the child and otherwise exposed the child to methamphetamine.
“This case painfully demonstrates the deadly consequences of substance abuse and drug addiction,” said Hurwit. “We stand with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, as well as the law enforcement officers and emergency personnel who responded to this tragedy, in mourning this loss of life.”
“The loss of her innocent newborn is something this mother will now have to live with for the rest of her life,” said Special Agent in Charge Shohini Sinha of the Salt Lake City FBI. “This case shows the unintended and devastating consequences of drug addiction. The FBI and our partners are continuously working to combat this problem which has resulted in so much pain and destruction in our communities.”
Chief U.S. District Judge David C. Nye ordered the five-year prison sentence be followed by three years of supervised release. Cody pleaded guilty to the charge on Dec. 21, 2023.
U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit commended the cooperative efforts of the FBI, the Fort Hall Police Department, the Bannock County Coroner’s Office, CARES at St. Luke’s in Twin Falls, and the Ada County Coroner’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack Haycock prosecuted the case.