BAKER COUNTY, Fla. — Rhonda Jewell, the Baker County babysitter convicted in the hot car death of 10-month-old Ariya Paige, was released on bond pending her appeal. It’s left a community frustrated with questions about how something like this can happen.

First Coast News spoke with a legal analyst who breaks down the case and if this is common.

Jewell was found guilty of third-degree murder and child neglect in November 2024 for leaving Ariya Paige in a hot car for five hours back in July 2023. She was sentenced to 17 years in prison in December 2024. However, a judge recently granted Jewell a $100,000 bond, allowing her to await her appeal outside of prison.

“It feels like the justice system just continues to fail our family over and over again,” said Pamela Paige, the grandmother of Ariya Paige. “This is about getting justice for Ariya because she deserves it herself.”

Shannon Schott, a legal analyst and attorney familiar with the case.

“Rhonda Jewell was a trusted caretaker for families all over Baker County, all over Macclenny, some of the most influential and powerful families in that community,” Schott said. “This is a case that has torn apart a very small community in Northeast Florida.”

Schott explained the unusual nature of this decision and how something like this can happen.

“This type of bond, the post-trial bond, is not something that’s handed out very often,” Schott said.

A judge granted something called a supersedeas bond. 

“Which means that while her case is pending on appeal, the judge granted a bond for her to be out, and she is at this point free on a bond,” Schott said.

Schott says the bond suggests the appeal raises significant legal questions.

“The big thing here is that there is no requirement that somebody be given a bond post-trial, and the fact that she received a bond post-trial goes to the weight of the arguments that are being made on appeal, and the fact that those grounds are fairly debatable and potentially that she will get a new trial,” Schott explained.

The judge’s decision to grant bond was based on Jewell’s clean criminal record, and she wasn’t considered a flight risk.

As conditions of her release, Jewell must surrender her passport, wear a GPS monitoring device, abide by a daily curfew, and avoid unsupervised contact with children under six years old.

The Baker County State Attorney’s Office told First Coast News this is a standard legal procedure. However, for Ariya Paige’s family, they say the decision has reopened wounds and raised questions about trust and justice in their community.