A Marshall County woman has been charged in connection with the death of her two-month-old child last month. Ashlee Rochelle Rans, 36, is accused of using methamphetamine before breastfeeding her baby and then falling asleep in the same bed.
Court documents say emergency responders were called to a home in the 14400 block of Lincoln Highway near Plymouth, on December 19. Rans reportedly told police that she had put her baby in bed with her in order to breast feed, when they fell asleep. She initially said she believed she had rolled over on the baby, according to the probable cause affidavit, while the autopsy later determined the cause of death to be acute methamphetamine intoxication.
Rans was taken into custody this week and eventually admitted to using meth, according to the affidavit. She’s charged with two Level 1 felony counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in death, one for sleeping in the same bed and the other for using meth while breastfeeding.
Marshall County Chief Deputy Prosecutor Tami Napier says “they’re punishable, if convicted, by a term of imprisonment of between 20 to 40 years, and a fine of up to $10,000.” In a statement, Napier said that cases like this require a “thorough law enforcement investigation that includes conclusions from experts.”
