By: Akanksha
Dr. Stacey Fazenbaker, a 61 year old Kentucky doctor, will not face criminal charges or a criminal trial in the death of her 10 month old granddaughter, Scottie Gwyn Crowell.
The Commonwealth’s Attorney for the Fourth Judicial Circuit and Hopkins County Attorney, Hannah Kington-Jarvis, announced in a press release that a grand jury declined to indict Fazenbaker after she allegedly forgot the baby in a hot car for hours, causing her death.
The grand jury met on Tuesday, October 27, and returned a “no true bill,” meaning it did not issue an indictment. According to prosecutors, the grand jury found “insufficient probable cause to issue an indictment” and bring a criminal case.
A grand jury’s decision not to indict is not a finding about what happened, rather it means prosecutors did not secure an indictment based on the grand jury presentation. Kington-Jarvis noted she could not speak about the decision further because grand jury proceedings are secret.
On August 13, ten month old Scottie Gwyn Crowell died after being left inside a car in the parking lot outside Owensboro Health MultiCare in Madisonville, Kentucky.
According to police and authorities, Fazenbaker had picked up the child that morning and was supposed to take her to daycare on her way to work at Owensboro Health MultiCare. However, Fazenbaker allegedly forgot the baby in the backseat of her car when she drove to work and went inside.
Per WEHT and other reports, the temperature outside that day reached about 95 degrees, while the temperature inside the vehicle rose as high as 115 degrees.
Later that day, Scottie’s father went to pick her up from daycare and learned that she had never been dropped off. Following this, Scottie’s mother—who is Fazenbaker’s daughter— called the grandmother to ask what had happened.
Fazenbaker ran out to her car around 4 p.m., where the 10 month old was found unresponsive. First responders attempted to revive the infant, but she could not be revived and was pronounced dead.
Following the incident, the Madisonville Police Department investigated the death and presented its findings to the grand jury.
“The Madisonville Police Department conducted a thorough and objective investigation. The Commonwealth waited to present this case to the Grand Jury until all relevant evidence was available for the Grand Jury to consider,” Kington-Jarvis stated in the release.
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Kington-Jarvis confirmed that the child’s parents, Sydni and Micah Crowell, were consulted both during the investigation and before the grand jury presentation.
“I would ask that you keep the infant’s parents and family in your thoughts and prayers as they continue to grieve and process this unimaginable loss,” Kington-Jarvis said in her statement.
(Rh/APC)