KALAMAZOO (WKZO-AM/FM) — A Kalamazoo couple who allegedly wrapped their four-year-old daughter in a blanket and duct tape to keep her from getting out of bed, leading to the child’s death, has been bound over to be tried on charges of murder and first-degree child abuse.
Matthew Longnecker, 34, and his fiance Kelly Ballinger, 33, now also face methamphetamine charges following Monday’s preliminary hearing.
Investigators say they were using the drug July 9, the night Desaray Thompson died.
Detectives testified that Ballinger admitted they bound the girl tight enough so she did not have enough breath to scream. They also said Ballinger ignored pleas from the girl the night she died.
Pathologists said that Desaray died from asphyxia and hypothermia.
Longnecker and Ballinger could get life in prison without parole if convicted.
Both are being held without bond.
