An Iowa woman has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty in connection with the death of her infant son, whom she said she found unresponsive inside a trash bin after waking up.
Jaley Bush, who was 28 when she was charged late last year, pleaded guilty in May to child endangerment and involuntary manslaughter. She had initially faced a charge of child endangerment resulting in death.
The incident took place on Jan. 27 while Bush was visiting a friend at a home on Hickory Terrace in Keokuk, Iowa. According to a criminal complaint, she brought her infant son, identified as R.S., with her to the residence.
Bush told investigators that she and the baby “passed out” on a bed in a basement bedroom. When she woke up, she found the child “head first and unresponsive inside of a trash can next to the bed,” the complaint stated.
The document said the baby had fallen asleep “on the inside portion of the bed.” Bush reportedly told authorities that she believed he “must have crawled over or around her before falling into the trash can.”
Keokuk Police Department officers responded to the home at about 2 p.m. and began lifesaving efforts. Body-worn camera footage obtained by Law&Crime showed Bush telling officers that her son “he had rolled into the trash bag.”
Police said Bush appeared to be under the influence when officers arrived. According to the complaint, she “exhibited signs of being under the influence of some form of narcotics as her demeanor was stoic and her speech appeared to be slurred.”
Bush told investigators she had taken Klonopin before falling asleep. The medication is a sedative commonly used to treat anxiety and seizures. She allegedly said she “did not know whom the pills belonged to.”
Authorities obtained a search warrant the following day to collect a blood sample from Bush. The results reportedly showed the presence of methamphetamine and benzodiazepines, the drug category that includes Klonopin.
Bush told police she had not taken any drugs between the arrival of first responders and the administration of the blood test, according to the court document.
The baby was pronounced dead on Feb. 5. His cause of death was determined to be asphyxia, meaning he died from a lack of oxygen.
Bush will serve her five-year sentence at the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women. Keokuk is located in southeastern Iowa near the borders of Missouri and Illinois.