Teen Kyneddi Miller was living in a West Virginia home with her mother, grandmother and grandfather at the time of her death
Credit: WCHS Eyewitness News
NEED TO KNOW
- A mom in West Virginia has been sentenced to up to life in prison over the April 2024 death of her 14-year-old daughter
- Julie Miller received the maximum sentence on Feb. 25 after pleading guilty to the death of a child by a parent by child abuse during a November hearing in relation to her daughter Kyneddi’s death
- Julie was charged after Kyneddi was found in an “emaciated to a skeletal state” on the bathroom floor, according to a criminal complaint previously obtained by PEOPLE
A West Virginia mom was sentenced to up to life in prison on Wednesday, Feb. 25, over the death of her teenage daughter.
Julie Miller will be eligible for parole after serving 15 years in the April 2024 death of Kyneddi Miller, per multiple outlets, including CBS News and ABC affiliate, WCHS.
Julie — who received the maximum sentence — had pleaded guilty to the death of a child by a parent by child abuse during a November hearing into the case, per the outlets.
A criminal complaint in the case previously viewed by PEOPLE said that Julie’s 14-year-old daughter Kydeddi had an eating disorder and that her mom had not sought medical care for her in at least four years.
Boone County Prosecutor Dan Holstein said in court testimony that Kyneddi spent the days of her life alone on a bathroom floor and weighed 58 pounds at the time of her death, per WCHS.
Credit: Courtesy of Boone County
“This child literally starved to death,” Boone County Circuit Judge Stacy Nowicki-Eldridge said during the sentencing, per ABC News. “No child should ever have to go through that.”
WCHS notes that, if granted parole, Julie will be required to serve 50 years of supervised release.
Julie was charged after Kyneddi was found in an “emaciated to a skeletal state” on the bathroom floor in her West Virginia home on April 17, according to a criminal complaint previously obtained by PEOPLE. According to the Boone County Sheriff's Office, Kyneddi went into cardiac arrest and passed away.
The complaint added that Kyneddi “had not been able to function on her own in a reported 4-5 days due to her physical state,” noting that she had an unchecked eating disorder. She “has not been eating for months,” and her health was “deteriorating for months or years,” it stated.
Credit: Boone County Sheriff’s Department
As cited by WCHS, Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Holstein said in court testimony that Kyneddi’s “life was taken just from sheer – I don’t know if it was selfishness or where it comes from, but for someone to kill their own daughter by means of not just a single act but a daily letting them waste away into nothing.”
He added that Kyneddi must have been in “agony” due to “suffering alone, essentially.”
Speaking on her own behalf during the hearing, Julie tearfully told the court that she “loved” her daughter. “I miss her every second of every day. She was my world and was the best little girl since day one," she said.
Per WCHS, Kyneddi’s older sister also tearfully read an impact statement, saying, "There are no words that can properly convey to you that a piece of sunlight was ripped out of the Earth the day that she died. It'll never come back. No matter what I do, there's nothing that will ever take the pain out of my chest."
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As cited by the local outlet, court documents alleged that, along with Julie, Kyneddi’s grandparents, Jerry and Donna Stone, failed to supply the teen with "necessary food and medical care during the months immediately preceding the death."
The outlet notes that Jerry was found incompetent to stand trial in the case in August, while Donna's trial has been delayed until next month.
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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