BANGOR, Maine — A Fairfield mother accused of smothering her newborn son on Dec. 30, 2015, pleaded not guilty to murder and manslaughter charges during a hearing Tuesday afternoon in Somerset County Superior Court, a spokesman for the Maine attorney general’s office said.
Kayla Stewart , 20, was indicted on the two charges on March 10 by the Somerset County grand jury.
Last month, Superior Court Justice Robert Murray found probable cause for a murder charge against Stewart and ordered that she continue to be held at the Somerset County Jail without bail, which continues to be the case, a jail official confirmed.
Stewart’s next court appearance has yet to be scheduled, attorney general’s office spokesman Timothy Feeley said. He said that Stewart will undergo a mental health evaluation to determine her competency.
The remains of a full-term infant with the umbilical cord attached were found Jan. 11 in the unheated, detached, single-car garage near the home Stewart shared with her boyfriend, Nicholas Blood, 25, of Fairfield, according to a previously published report.
The medical examiner determined the child was born full-term and alive, Assistant Attorney General John Alsop, who is prosecuting the case, said last month. The baby died of asphyxiation, the prosecutor told the judge.
Police found the remains wrapped in a blanket and trash bags, hidden under an oil tank in the garage, a police affidavit said. Blood-stained bedding, paper towels and plastic gloves were found in the garage near the oil tank.
A DNA test determined that Blood most likely was the father of the baby boy. Blood has not been charged in connection with his son’s death. He and Stewart have a 3-year-old son who now is living with other relatives, according to previously published reports.
If convicted of murder, Stewart faces between 25 years and life in prison. She faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted of manslaughter.
BDN writer Judy Harrison contributed to this report.