Not guilty pleas for man, woman charged in 11-month-old daughter's 2021 overdose death

MADISON, Wis. — Attorneys for the parents charged in their 11-month-old daughter’s 2021 overdose death entered not guilty pleas on their clients’ behalfs Wednesday, online court records show.

Kelsey Kindschy, 32, and Derrick Hawkins, 25, both of Madison, each face one felony charge of neglecting a child where the consequence is death as a party to a crime. Police arrested them last month, more than a year after the baby’s death.

According to a criminal complaint, the baby died at Meriter Hospital on the night of July 20, 2021. An autopsy later found she died from the combined effects of fentanyl and morphine toxicity and concluded she had 13 times the amount of fentanyl needed to kill an adult in her system, the complaint alleges.

Both cases were bound over for trial during Wednesday’s court proceedings. Online records did not list future court dates for Kindschy or Hawkins as of Wednesday afternoon.