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Denver Mom Beat Two-Month-Old Baby To Death

By Chelsea Hoffman
Published on: 07:49 PST, Jun 14, 2016

A Denver mom has been sentenced to nearly 40 years of incarceration in association with the horrifying death of her own infant daughter. The Denver Post reports that 23-year-old Kelsy Newell-Skinner entered a guilty plea earlier this year, which spared her from having to go to trial, as part of a plea deal. The circumstances surrounding this case are shocking, and they are also indicative of why this young woman will be elderly by the time she ever sees the outside of the prison walls.

In 2014, Denver mom Kelsy Newell-Skinner was arrested after her daughter was admitted to a hospital with numerous fatal injuries. Two-month-old Natalee Hurst-Skinner suffered from multiple fractures to her skull, as well as several broken ribs. She had bite marks on her thighs, and her little body was battered and bruised. Hospital staff determined that the little infant was also suffering from brain damage. In fact, little Natalee was pronounced “brain dead” shortly before she died from her injuries.

In 2014, the father of the slain infant seemed to defend Newell-Skinner, declaring that she may have been suffering from postpartum depression. The father of little Natalee also placed responsibility on DHS workers, who had investigated the family at least once prior to the horrifying beating death of the two-month-old child.

“I think everything would have been different if the caseworkers would have came. They would have gave us the right resources to help our family out, ’cause that’s all we needed, was just a little bit of help.”

That defense fell on deaf ears, however, since the Denver mom had to take a plea agreement just to find herself imprisoned for the next 35 years. Had this woman been gripped by an extreme form of postpartum depression, would the courts have been more lenient with her?

The most severe form of postpartum depression is known as postpartum psychosis. This extreme condition is far more serious than the “baby blues” and can drive mothers to commit unthinkable acts while they are not in their right minds. One such case that illustrates postpartum psychosis is the horrifying story of Andrea Yates. Yates drowned all five of her children while suffering from a psychotic episode. Ultimately, Yates was hospitalized for her mental condition instead of ending up on Texas’s Death Row.

Denver mom Kelsy Newell-Skinner was reportedly intoxicated the night two-month-old Natalee was beaten brutally. Texts were sent to the father of the infant indicating that she had no memory of beating the baby and felt horrible about it. The Denver mom said she “must have been very drunk” that previous night.

[Photo via Denver DA’s Office]

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