HUNTSVILLE — A Moberly woman accused of abusing children at her daycare was sentenced Wednesday to 14 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections.
Naomi Hess pleaded guilty in August to four counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, reduced from four counts of child abuse in exchange for her guilty plea. She entered the plea on the same day she was set to go to trial.
She was sentenced to seven years on each of the four counts, with some set to be served concurrently and others consecutively, totaling 14 years.
Judge Mason Gebhardt ordered her to report within two days to begin her sentence.
Hess faced the charges in connection to a 2024 investigation into her daycare, Play N Learn, according to previous KOMU 8 reporting on the case.
Hess relinquished her license, and the daycare was closed during the investigation, according to previous reporting, which cited a probable cause statement.
The statement alleged investigators obtained video of Hess abusing four children between the ages of 2 and 3 years old, according to previous reporting.
The video, allegedly taken by a Play N Learn employee, showed Hess with her legs on top of a crying child, forcefully pulling a child's legs from under them to make them lie down, pushing a child into a chair and forcefully laying a child on their stomach, according to the probable cause statement.
Hess allegedly admitted to some of the allegations but denied a claim that she was rough with one child who was autistic, according to the probable cause statement.