A Missouri mother who told investigators she accidentally placed her 1-month-old daughter in an oven instead of a crib has been sentenced to more than a decade in prison after a plea agreement dismissed a first-degree murder charge.
Mariah Thomas, 28, pleaded guilty Tuesday to first-degree endangering the welfare of a child resulting in death. Jackson County court records show she was sentenced to 13 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections.
The sentence came more than two years after Kansas City police discovered Thomas’ infant daughter dead inside a home, suffering from severe burns.
Mariah Thomas was sentenced to 13 years in prison after pleading guilty to endangering the welfare of a child resulting in death. Prosecutors dismissed a first-degree murder charge under the plea agreement. (Jackson County Detention Center)
Thomas also faced a first-degree murder charge, but prosecutors agreed to dismiss it as part of the plea deal, court records state. She was not granted probation and will receive credit for the time she has already spent in custody.
The tragedy unfolded on Feb. 9, 2024, when officers were dispatched to the home at about 1:30 p.m. following a report that a baby was not breathing, according to charging documents.
When police arrived, they found the 1-month-old girl with apparent burns covering her body. Kansas City Fire Department personnel pronounced the infant dead at the scene.
Investigators learned that Thomas had intended to put her daughter down for a nap but, according to court documents, “accidentally placed her in the oven instead of the crib.”
The sentence followed the discovery of Thomas’ infant daughter, who Kansas City police found dead with severe burns inside a city home. (Kansas City Missouri Police Department, File)
A family member later told detectives that Thomas said, “I thought I put [her] in her crib and I accidentally put her in the oven.”
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The baby was wearing a bodysuit over a diaper. Investigators said the clothing appeared to have melted onto the diaper. Police also found a baby blanket in the living room with extensive burn marks, according to the probable cause statement.
The infant was identified by FOX 4 Kansas City as Za’riah Thomas.
Thomas initially refused to speak with detectives after being advised of her rights. She later agreed to provide a blood sample and authorized investigators to access information from her cellphone, court documents state.
A baby monitor camera is positioned above a crib in a California home nursery. (Tech Trends/Gado/Getty Images)
Then-Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker described the child’s death as a “gruesome” tragedy when the original charge was announced in February 2024.
“We acknowledge the gruesome nature of this tragedy, and our hearts are weighted by the loss of this precious life,” Baker said at the time. “We trust the criminal justice system to respond appropriately to these awful circumstances.”
The initial complaint charged Thomas with first-degree endangering the welfare of a child resulting in death.
Prosecutors later added the first-degree murder charge, which was ultimately dismissed under Tuesday’s plea agreement, according to court records.
Judge Sarah A. Castle determined that Thomas entered her guilty plea freely and voluntarily and understood both the charge and its consequences. The judgment also states that Thomas did not raise a defense based on mental disease or defect.
Thomas was returned to Jackson County sheriff’s custody while awaiting transfer to state prison. The judge ordered her to pay $68 to Missouri’s Crime Victims’ Compensation Fund and waived all other court costs.
News Media reached out to the Jackson County prosecutor’s office for comment.
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