TOPEKA (KSNT) – A judge has sentenced a woman to more than a decade in prison in connection to the death of her 16-month-old child in 2025.
Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay told 27 News that a judge sentenced Jaliyah M. Smith, 27, to 141 months, or around 11 years, in prison. This comes after law enforcement accused her of killing her 16-month-old child last year.
Jaliyah M. Smith’s mugshot. (Photo Courtesy/Shawnee County Department of Corrections)
Topeka police responded to a call on July 19, 2025, in the 3300 block of Southwest 29th Terrace in Topeka regarding a child in need of medical care.
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According to court records, Smith and another individual requested an ambulance be sent to their home to assist their 16-month-old daughter who was not breathing. Medical personnel transported the child to a local hospital, where she later died. Law enforcement questioned the child’s parents regarding the circumstances of the child’s death but made no arrests.
An autopsy later revealed the child’s cause of death to be fentanyl poisoning, according to court records. Police arrested Smith on Jan. 6, 2026, for her role in the child’s death with prosecutors filing charges soon after.
Smith pleaded ‘not guilty’ to her charges and was bound over for trial in April this year. However, she later pleaded guilty to four charges in July, including:
- Involuntary manslaughter
- Two counts of aggravated endangering of a child
- Possession of fentanyl
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