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Kyle Parker Confronted By Raped And Murdered Toddler’s Mom At Sentencing

By Gail Delaney
Published on: 11:52 PST, Mar 1, 2017

Kyle Parker, 23, accused of kidnapping, raping and killing 14-month-old Shaylyn Ammerman, will spend 60 years in jail. Many had hoped for the death penalty or life in prison, but the judge accepted the prosecution’s plea deal and dropped many of the charges against him, People reported.

Kyle appeared in court on February 27, 2017, before Judge Lori Thatcher Quillen to receive his sentence. Prosecutor Don VanDerMoere told the judge that the case was not strong enough for a jury trial. Don urged the judge to accept Parker’s plea deal and drop most of the charges against him. Kyle would spend some time in jail and then be eligible for parole.

Shaylyn’s mother, Jessica Stewart, took the stand so she could say a few things to the man who murdered her daughter. She did not speak forgiveness toward him, but her few choice words belayed her feelings for the man who raped and killed her daughter.

“You took my loving, sweet and beautiful daughter away from me, her brother, her dad and everyone who loves her. I hope you live with your guilt and it torments you for the rest of your life.”

According to RTV 6 ABC, when Don VanDerMoer asked for the plea deal, he was close to tears.

“Blame me that we don’t have evidence. Blame me that we’ve got witnesses that are impeachable. But leave that family alone. Send him for 60 years to the department of corrections and let this be done. Your honor, I ask you to accept the plea deal in this case. It’s not what I want, but it’s the right thing that has to be done.”

The witnesses Don referred to had major problems in the pornographic world. One witness had been charged with rape. Electronic devices were seized and investigated from the homes of other witnesses. Investigators found the hard drives full of online searches “for violent, pornographic images” against women and young girls.

A long list of charges had been dropped against Kyle in exchange for the plea deal. These include rape, child molestation, strangulation, and the disposition of a body. Also dropped against Kyle were the charges of obstruction of justice, aggravated assault and the failure to report a dead body. Because the rape charges were dropped, Kyle would not have to register as a sex offender after he is released from prison, but he will have to register as a serious violent offender. Even though Kyle was sentenced to serve 60 years, he may be paroled in 45 years for good behavior.

Kyle Parker confessed that he kidnapped Shaylyn on March 23, 2016, after he spent the night drinking with Shaylyn’s uncle, Adam Ammerman. Apparently, they had just become friends when Adam invited Kyle over for a night of drinking and movie watching. Adam does not own his own home. Instead, he shares the home with Shaylyn’s parents, Justin Ammerman and Jessica Stewart.

Police records state that they drank alcohol that night and watched a movie. Adam fell asleep in his chair while Kyle continued to drink. Adam maintained that he didn’t wake up until he heard the front door close. He peered out the window in time to see Mr. Parker carrying something as he headed to his car.

“Adam stated he saw Kyle Parker walking away from the house and he was carrying something. Adam advised he yelled at Kyle to say goodbye but Kyle would not turn around. Adam informed detectives that he thought he saw a foot dangling from Kyle’s side but was not certain so he went back to bed.”

When the case first began, Kyle told investigators that Adam was the one who killed the girl and had asked him to help get rid of the body, which Parker agreed to do. Mr. Parker informed the police they would find the Shaylyn’s body in the remote area of Gosport, Indiana, next to the White River. It was just two days after Shaylyn’s disappearance, on March 24, 2016, that they found her unclothed body exactly where Mr. Parker said she would be.

Adam Ammerman took a polygraph test to prove his innocence. The test showed that he knew nothing about Shaylyn’s murder or her disappearance. The police told Parker about Adam’s polygraph test and that he was not involved in her abduction. That was all it took for Parker to change his story and give his confession. Kyle told investigators that he killed Shaylyn in the front seat of his car with a blanket and that he had burned her sleeper outfit and pacifier. He said that he used bleach to get rid of the evidence on Shaylyn’s body, but there was no evidence of bleach anywhere on her body upon examination.

Before Kyle admitted his guilt to the police, he told his stepfather, Mike Patton, that he had killed the girl. Mike alerted police about his conversation and gave a probable cause affidavit.

“Mike [Patton] stated when he spoke to Kyle on 3-24-16 during a smoke break from the interview, Kyle informed him that the police would have the truth once they found Shaylyn’s body and the DNA with it. Mike stated he knew right then that Kyle had taken Shaylyn and raped and killed her.”

Dr. Donna Stewart performed the autopsy. She told police that it was “the worst case of sexual trauma she had seen in her career.”

Although Kyle Parker received a very light sentence, the little girl’s family members may have some closure. If the trial had gone to a jury, they would’ve had to listen to the things that Kyle Parker did to their precious child in her final moments on the earth. Tamera Morgan, the grandmother to Shaylyn, shared her thoughts about the plea deal.

“I am ecstatic over it. I do wish he would’ve gotten more but he’s being put away. He’s finally admitting his guilt which is awesome. Shaylyn is getting her justice. A great burden is lifted off me because we don’t have to go through that trial because I don’t think I could have gone through that at all. It’s over and finally that’s all we wanted for it to be over, and hopefully the community can heal because this is the worst thing that ever happened in Spencer.”

What do you think about the plea deal and the court allowing numerous charges to be dropped as if they never happened? Should they allow plea deals to enter the courts when a life is taken? Post your thoughts below.

[Featured Image by Indiana State Police/AP Images]

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