Taylor Fast, 23, of Festus pleaded guilty Aug. 17 to two felony charges in the 2015 death of her 17-month-old daughter, Layla Fast-Evans.
Fast pleaded guilty to first-degree abuse or neglect of a child resulting in death, a class A felony, and to endangering the welfare of a child, a class C felony. Sentencing is scheduled for 9 a.m. Oct. 2 before Jefferson County Div. 5 Circuit Judge Victor Melenbrink at the Jefferson County Courthouse in Hillsboro.
According to the probable-cause statement in the case, the Medical Examiner reported that Layla had blunt trauma to her face, which occurred more than a week before the baby was found dead. The Medical Examiner also said the girl received no medical treatment for those injuries, and her “condition worsened, eventually resulting in death.”
Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney Forrest Wegge said Fast made an “open plea,” meaning there was no plea agreement and the court has discretion in sentencing.
The penalty for a class A felony is 10 to 30 years or life in prison, while a class C felony is punishable by up to seven years.
Kathy Evans, Layla Fast-Evans’ paternal grandmother, said she was in the courtroom when Fast entered her plea.
“It gives me some comfort knowing she pleaded guilty,” Evans said. “But, no closure. All we know was she was guilty of child neglect resulting in death. We’ll never know what actually caused the death.”
Evans, who lives in Hillsboro, said she wants to see Fast sentenced to life in prison.
“I’m praying the judge doesn’t fail us,” Evans said. “I would like to see her get a life sentence. We’re going to fill the courtroom for the sentencing. We’re going to let that judge know we’re there. We want him to know Layla had a lot of love.”
Evans organized a March Against Child Abuse in Layla’s memory in April 2016 that started at the Jefferson County Courthouse and ended at the Jefferson County Jail in Hillsboro. Another one was held April 1 of this year.
Police reported that emergency personnel responded to an 8:20 a.m. call on April 19, 2015, about an unresponsive child at the Festus Gardens apartment complex in the 200 block of Timberwyck. Fast told officers her daughter had been bitten by a spider and was unconscious, Festus Police Chief Tim Lewis reported.
The baby was found dead at the apartment with “severe injuries to her face and neck and bruising over most of her body,” Lewis said in an Aug. 20, 2015, Leader story.
Joachim-Plattin Ambulance District personnel arrived and told officers the child had been dead for several hours. Fast told authorities she did not know what had happened to her daughter throughout the night, Lewis said.
When authorities responded to the call about Layla, they also discovered that Fast’s son, Conner, then 3, had a broken leg. DeWayne Boyer, Fast’s boyfriend at the time, was sentenced April 24 to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to first-degree abuse or neglect of a child – serious or emotional or physical injury for injuring Conner, court records show.
According to the probable-cause statement in that case, Fast told police her son had been limping for two to three days and that her boyfriend had hurt him. She acknowledged that she did not seek medical attention for her son or report the possible child abuse, the report said.
Fast was initially charged with a class C felony in connection with injuries to her son, but in August 2015, authorities upgraded charges against Fast after receiving the Jefferson County Medical Examiner’s Office report on Layla. The report was referred to in a supplemental probable-cause statement on Layla’s death.
Fast’s attorney, Joe Collier of the Jefferson County Public Defender’s Office, said Aug. 25 he could not comment about the case.
Fast is being held in the Jefferson County Jail awaiting sentencing.