VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — A woman will serve 10 years in prison like her husband after being sentenced for the death of her infant daughter.
Virginia Beach Circuit Court Judge James C. Lewis sentenced Karista Hope Bohren on Tuesday, Sept. 26 to 16 years in prison, with six years suspended, after she pleaded guilty May 8 to charges of involuntary manslaughter and child abuse/neglect.
Her husband, Skip Bohren, had been sentenced May 2 to the maximum 10 years in prison for involuntary manslaughter after he pleaded guilty to a charge of involuntary manslaughter Feb. 15.
On Sept. 5, 2021, police were called to the 5000 block of Stedwick Court in Virginia Beach to investigate the death of Karista’s 38-day-old infant K.B.
Karista became pregnant with K.B. by another man, but, according to the Commonwealth’s case, Skip accepted the child as his own and helped take care of her. The couple used methamphetamines before and after the child’s birth.
According to court documents, K.B. had been crying more than normal on the days leading up to her death.
Skip and Karista took the infant with them to collect Lime Scooters to recharge. The couple returned home around 3 a.m., and at some point Skip laid K.B. between Karista and himself on a mattress on the floor.
Court records show that Karista knew the dangers of sleeping with an infant in the bed but did it anyway.
Around 7:30 a.m., Karista woke up and screamed when she noticed a small amount of blood around the infant’s mouth and her arm in an upward position.
A roommate called 911 and Skip attempted CPR, but the child was already dead.
An autopsy listed the cause of death as sudden unexpected infant death associated with methamphetamine and amphetamine intoxication and unsafe sleep.
When asked, Karista told investigators that the child could have ingested methamphetamine crumbs from her shirt, breast milk, residue on her fingers or from her blood. She also stated that someone could have used a water bottle that used to mix methamphetamine.
Both Karista Bohren and Skip Bohren have prior convictions.
