A Texas mother will serve several decades in prison for allowing her 3-month-old baby boy to starve to death in a Waco hotel.
Skylynn Tuerk, 34, pleaded guilty on Thursday morning to one count of murder, injury to a child, endangering a child, and possession of methamphetamine, a controlled substance.
In turn, 54th District Court Judge Susan Kelly sentenced Tuerk to 40 years in prison for murder, 40 years for injury to a child, and two years for each of the other charges.
Her sentences were determined to run concurrently, which means they will occur at the same time. She will be eligible for parole after serving at least twenty years.
The defendant will also be given credit for 633 days spent in pretrial detention, the court determined.
“We are grateful that this defendant accepted responsibility and received a sentence in the upper end of the punishment range, while also removing the risks inherent in the trial and appeals process,” McLennan County Assistant District Attorney Tara Avants told Waco-based ABC affiliate KXXV. “In legal terms, the difference between a life sentence and a 40-year sentence is only ten years.
The horrific and irresponsible nature of this Defendant’s behavior made us unwilling to accept any lesser punishment.”
The behavior in question was discovered on November 29, 2023.
Police were dispatched to the New Road Inn, a hotel on the frontage road of Interstate 35. There, the infant Jacob Jeremiah Amon Harris was discovered dead as a result of prolonged starvation.
Responding to a call about an unresponsive child, the boy was described as “starving and looking like a skeleton,” according to court records obtained by Waco-based CBS and Telemundo affiliate KWTX.
In local media accounts, the victim was widely referred to as “Baby JJ.”
Police rescued Baby JJ’s sister, who was then three years old, from the filthy quarters. Officers said they discovered cockroaches, raw meat, knives and swords, and drugs in a backpack at the crime scene.
Tuerk and the boy’s father, Charles Devin Harris, 28, were indicted in January 2024 on multiple counts in connection with Baby JJ’s death.
A third party reported the child’s welfare to Child Protective Services, which prompted the investigation into the family.
The CPS caller expressed concern that Baby JJ had not gained enough weight since his birth and characterized Tuerk as “nonchalant” about the situation. Meanwhile, Harris is accused of “playing video games the entire time” that the other person was in the room.
Officers arrived the next day, but it was too late; they described the family as living in “unclean and dangerous” conditions, noting that bladed weapons were “within reach of the 3-year-old girl.”
According to court documents, officers also reported that there was no “real food for the children” in the “unsanitary” hotel room, as well as no baby formula for Jacob. Rather, police claimed that the “only food found for the children were a couple of juice boxes and fruit snacks.”
The father’s case is currently in the pretrial stage.
Tuerk’s defense attorney issued a statement to several local media outlets following the sentencing hearing.
“This was a tragic situation, and Skylynn was devastated by the loss of her child,” Jonathan Sibley said. “Skylynn and her family are still grieving the loss of their child, but they are relieved to have completed this stage of the process.
Skylynn and her family have not only lost a loved one, but they will also have to deal with Skylynn’s absence while she is incarcerated.
Skylynn’s family appeared in court today to support her, and I’m confident they will continue to do so while she is incarcerated.”
