MITCHELL, S.D. — A South Dakota woman is behind bars after police said she repeatedly kicked a 5-year-old boy in the abdomen, killing him.
According to KELO-TV, authorities arrested Julia Lee Carter, 21, of Mitchell, on first-degree manslaughter and child abuse charges after the boy, who shared a home with Carter, died earlier this week.
In a Facebook post Wednesday, Mitchell police said a woman called dispatchers about 8 a.m. Monday to say she was taking an unresponsive child to Queen of Peace hospital. After attempting to save the boy, doctors declared him dead.
Medical examiners performed an autopsy and concluded that the boy's death was a homicide caused by "significant blunt force trauma to the abdomen," the post said.
In an interview with investigators, Carter estimated that she had kicked the boy "five times in the stomach and stomped on his abdomen," according to the Facebook post.
Police continue to investigate the case.