VAN BUREN, Ark. — A Van Buren woman whose son reportedly died with meth in his system has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter, according to court documents.
In addition to a manslaughter charge, Prosecuting Attorney Kevin Holmes also introduced new charges against Rachael Dukes, including second-degree domestic battery, introducing a controlled substance into the body of another person, and enhanced penalties for offenses committed in the presence of a child.
On June 12, Dukes pleaded not guilty to all charges in connection with her son's death.
According to a probable cause affidavit, an investigation was launched into the death of Dukes' child after he died on March 30, 2024. She reportedly told police she fed the child a bottle and put him to bed. When she woke up, she told police she noticed the child was no longer breathing.
The report said Dukes took the child to her neighbor's apartment where they called 911 and started CPR. The child was transported to a nearby hospital where he was confirmed to be dead.
Investigators spoke with Duke about what happened leading up to his death. She reportedly showed police how she fed her child, put him down to sleep, and what she did when she woke up. From this interaction, the coroner collected the child's bottle and bedding he was sleeping on for testing.
According to the affidavit, a toxicology report showed the child had methamphetamine and amphetamine in his system. Dukes reportedly told police she did not know how the meth got into the child's system. However, crime lab reports showed the bottle used to feed the child tested positive for methamphetamine.
Dukes later told police "she was holding some meth and it accidentally fell into the bottle" before feeding it to him, the affidavit says.
According to the report, police searched her phone and found several incidents of drug use and purchases by Dukes. She allegedly admitted to using and buying meth while her son was still alive.
"There were also messages that Dukes sent that spoke of the kids being in the house when the drug sales and use was occurring," the affidavit said.
An autopsy report also showed that the child had a non-fatal skull fracture, according to the affidavit. Dukes told police while she was changing her son on the bed, he fell off.
After the investigation, Dukes was booked into the Benton County Jail on June 1. She is being held on a $150,000 bond.
Her next court date is set for Sept. 3, 2024.
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