A Missouri mother has allegedly confessed to smothering her six-week-old baby to death in a crime that was reportedly fueled by revenge against her ex-boyfriend. KMBC News reports that 17-year-old Whitley Rachael Evenson is facing life in prison for the horrific crime she is accused of committing. The details of this case are nothing short of heartbreaking, especially regarding the possible motive.
Evenson is accused of killing her six-week-old son by smothering him in the home of her brother, where she was living in Independence, Missouri. Police have claimed that her boyfriend Leo Walker had broken up with her five days prior to the death, which resulted in him moving out of the teen mom’s brother’s home. Walker has even spoken out about their rocky relationship, and its history. He claimed that he stayed with her temporarily after she told him she was pregnant with their second child.
“Me and her were fighting still and I wanted to leave and I told her it was over one day and she goes, ‘But I’m pregnant.’”
As it turns out, having a second child with the teen mom didn’t fix their broken relationship. He couldn’t take being with her anymore, so he moved out and is now residing in Oklahoma. He told media reporters that he believes his son’s death was brought on by the end of their relationship.
“So it was one of those nights, she wasn’t getting her way and she just snapped and took it out on the little one.”
In the beginning of the investigation, Evenson told authorities that the death was an accident caused by her failure to remove a blanket from his crib. However, under some interrogation, she allegedly confessed that she held her hand over the baby’s face to smother him to death in her brother’s home.
Fox 4 News reports that the paternal grandmother has expressed anger upon learning that the teen has been charged with murder in the little boy’s death. She also believes that Evenson killed the six-week-old baby in an act of revenge against Leo for leaving her.
“I never got to meet this little guy and it just crushes me. It was the grand baby I’ll never get to see.”
The teen mom is currently being held on $100k bond in a Missouri jail, where she is expected to remain through the remainder of the legal process. She’s due back in court in the beginning of October after appearing in court for the first time this week. If she’s convicted of killing her baby, she could receive life imprisonment. However, it’s not known at this time if she could have the chance at parole. Even though she is under the age of 18, she is going to be tried as an adult.
Photo: Independence Police mugshot
