Mother sentenced to 30 years in prison for death of 3-year-old son in 2023 – The Vicksburg Post

On Wednesday, in Warren County Court, Judge M. James Chaney sentenced Brooke Mallett to 30 years in prison, the maximum sentence allowed by law, for the death of her young child in 2023.

Mallett received the maximum sentence of 20 years for manslaughter in connection with the death of her son, Kaiden Mallett, and five years each for two counts of child neglect.

Mallett was convicted of manslaughter and child neglect on June 13 following a trial in Warren County Court.

The charges against Mallett stem from an incident in April of last year when both 3-year-old Kaiden Mallett and a 5-year-old sibling disappeared from their home and were gone for hours without the mother or boyfriend noticing, according to police at the time. Kaiden Mallett was later found dead in a pond near Memory Lane. Mallett and his then-boyfriend John Duke Walker were initially charged with murder before a grand jury reduced the charge to manslaughter.

During Mallett’s trial in June, prosecutors presented testimony from Warren County Coroner Doug Huskey, who confirmed that he pronounced the child dead at 12:29 p.m. on April 21, 2023.

Warren County Sheriff’s officials said that when they arrived at the home where Mallett and the children were staying, they found the house in extremely poor condition. Clothes, toys and dirty dishes were scattered everywhere. The home had no electricity or water, and according to witnesses, drug paraphernalia and a loaded gun were also found in the home. Because there was a warrant out for Mallett’s arrest, she was taken into custody. Walker was also arrested on suspicion of child neglect.

Shirlene Hill of Child Protective Services also testified at length. She was called to the home of Lynne Cox, who testified that the older child showed up at her home on the day in question dirty, barefoot, and covered in bug bites. Hill said she was given authorization to take the older child to the emergency room at Merit Health River Region in Vicksburg. A later urine sample from the child tested positive for methamphetamines and amphetamines, according to the testimony. Hill also testified about two previous CPS reports involving Mallett in Copiah County. In one of those reports, dated March 2023, Kaiden Mallett tested positive for methamphetamines. Based on that finding, the mother was ordered to immediately undergo a drug test in Copiah County. She failed to show up, which resulted in a warrant being issued for her arrest.

Doctors from both River Region Medical Center and the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson testified in June about the older child’s health and agreed with Hill’s assessment of his physical appearance. Their testimony described the treatment, their concerns about the child’s neglect and the positive drug test.

Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace testified he responded to the first 911 call on Old Highway 27 when the older child was found. Pace also led the search for the younger child and eventually found him floating in a pond near Memory Lane. Pace pulled the child from the water and began CPR until paramedics arrived and pronounced the child dead, he said in his testimony.

Mallett’s sentences imposed Wednesday must be served consecutively, Chaney said in court.

The full story of Mallett’s June trial is below:

Mallett found guilty on all charges related to the death of his young son