A young woman from Iowa, aged 21, is facing charges of child endangerment leading to death following the tragic drowning of her toddler son in a bathtub. Kayla Bevar was taken into custody on December 4th, subsequent to an inquiry into the death of her 20-month-old son. The West Des Moines Police Department reported that emergency services were dispatched to Bevar’s residence around 7 p.m. on October 31st, following a distress call from the mother.
Court records reveal that Bevar dialed emergency services after waking up to find her son floating in the bathtub. Despite being rushed to the hospital, the toddler was declared dead on arrival. According to the documents, Bevar informed the police that she had started her son’s bath at 6:30 p.m. on the night of the incident. She left the room while the bathtub was filling up, with the drain plugged.
Bevar reportedly told investigators that she checked on her son “periodically” while he was in the bathtub, before she fell asleep. She later confessed to the police that she had a habit of leaving her son unattended in a filled bathtub for five-minute intervals. When she found her son, he was unconscious, floating on his side, and the bathtub was overflowing.
In addition to this incident, the police reported that the apartment where Bevar and her son lived was in a deplorable state. The floors were littered with spoiled food and trash, and there were diapers with exposed fecal matter in the bathroom. The police also noted that there was no suitable food for a toddler in the apartment, and there was a noticeable absence of children’s clothing.
Bevar is now facing two felony charges – child endangerment resulting in death and neglect or abandonment of a dependent person. She is currently being held at the Polk County Jail, with her bail set at $1 million in cash.