KY couple arrested, charged with reckless homicide after reporting miscarriage
A Kentucky couple was arrested Monday after reporting a miscarriage more than a year ago.
Deann Bennett, 27, and Charles Bennett, 32, of Booneville, were indicted Jan. 22 on one count apiece of reckless homicide. Deann Bennett also faces charges of tampering with physical evidence, abuse of a corpse and concealing the birth of an infant.
According to a news release Tuesday from Kentucky State Police, the investigation began in November 2024, when Deann Bennett was taken to a hospital for a “possible miscarriage.”
At the hospital, the couple told police the “infant” was still at the home on Lewis Lane, according to state police. When troopers arrived, they found an “unresponsive infant over an embankment” outside the home.
The Owsley County coroner said the baby died at the scene and was transported to Frankfort for an autopsy.
State police did not identify the gestational age of the remains or identify the cause or manner of death.
The Bennetts are lodged in the Three Forks Regional Jail, and their arraignment is scheduled for March 2.
Wolfe County case
Their arrest comes just a few weeks after a Wolfe County woman was arrested for taking abortion medication to terminate a pregnancy. She was subsequently reported to authorities after seeking care from an area clinic.
The woman, Melissa Spencer, 35, of Campton was initially indicted on charges including fetal homicide, but that charge was dropped suddenly after prosecutors said they discovered it cannot be applied to people seeking abortion care.
While Kentucky bans nearly all abortions with few exceptions, the state’s fetal homicide law explicitly prohibits its use in cases where a woman seeks an abortion.
Spencer still faces charges of concealing the birth of an infant, abuse of a corpse and tampering with physical evidence.
Unlike fetal homicide, reckless homicide — the charge the Bennetts face — includes no such restriction on who can be charged. It’s defined in Kentucky statute as simply “reckless(ly) caus(ing) the death of another person.”
This story was originally published February 10, 2026 at 5:02 PM.
