Officials search day care, parents’ home after infant’s death

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Law enforcement has searched both the home day care and residence of an infant who died under what authorities have deemed suspicious circumstances.

The searches were conducted in connection with the death of three-month-old Brooklyn Kennedy Howard, who died June 19 after she was cared for at a home day care in rural Davison County. Though it has been more than a week since the death occurred, authorities have released few details of the investigation.

According to a search warrant return filed Tuesday with the Davison County Clerk of Courts, agents with the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation executed search warrants June 19 at the home of Howard’s parents, Donald Howard and Amy Ruml, located at 40611 249th St. in Mitchell, and at a residence located at 709 W. Spruce St, which is described in the search warrant as “a residence where Lacey Tebay cares for a number of children, to include Brooklyn Kennedy Howard.”

In both instances, investigators were searching for photographs, video and any other evidence possibly connected to Howard’s death, court documents say.

An inventory listing property taken in the search show a laptop was taken from the Spruce Street residence, along with swabs of the exterior edge of a screen door and a basement handrail. Another inventory shows video and photos were taken from inside of the home of Howard’s parents.

While a search-warrant affidavit — a document provided to a judge by law enforcement to give probable cause to justify the warrant — is usually made public, an order sealing the affidavit was filed with other court documents.

The order states the affidavit “should not be released to the public as it may impede further investigation.”

Sara Rabern, spokeswoman for the state Attorney General’s Office, said in an interview June 22 that authorities had deemed Howard’s death suspicious, but would not disclose why, or if criminal activity was involved.

Tags: infant death, brooklyn howard, day care, search warrant, news, updates, police