Mother sentenced in connection with teen death

BOONE COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) - A mother has been sentenced to 15 years to life in the case of her 14-year-old daughter’s death.

Julie Miller received her sentence Wednesday morning in Boone County Circuit Court.

If Miller is later granted parole, Circuit Judge Stacy Nowicki-Eldridge ruled it will be with 50 years of supervision.

Miller, the mother of Kyneddi Miller, pleaded guilty in November of last year to death of a child by parent, guardian, or custodian.

Mother charged in connection with teen death pleads guilty

At the sentencing, Judge Nowicki-Eldridge said she’d seen photographs of the victim, and the details are beyond her level of understanding and comprehension.

“No child should ever have to go through that,” she said. “This child deserved a mother who provided, at the bare minimum, enough food that her body didn’t eat itself,” the judge said.

Julie Miller spoke at the sentencing hearing.

“I just want to say I love my baby,” Miller said. “I loved every second I had with her.”

Daniel Holstein, Boone County’s prosecuting attorney, shared his reaction to the sentence.

“If there’s ever a case that deserved to get the maximum penalty, this is it,” Holstein said.

A family member who didn’t want to be identified spoke at the hearing, saying Kyneddi was her best friend, and she can’t convey how painful this was.

Deputies were dispatched to a home in the Morrisvale area of Boone County on April 17, 2024, in connection with the cardiac arrest of Kyneddi Miller.

Her body was found in a skeletal state, according to deputies.

Deputies say the teen had not received any medical treatment in at least four years.

A criminal investigation uncovered that the teen had not attended school since late 2019, early 2020. She had only been outside the house roughly two times in four years and had not eaten in months. The family told deputies the child suffered from an eating disorder.

Deputies described the teen’s appearance as “shocking.”

Kyneddi Miller’s grandparents, Jerry Stone and Donna Stone, were also arrested in May of 2024 and charged with child neglect resulting in death.

The criminal complaints states Jerry and Donna lived inside the home in Morrisvale with the teen and her mother.

Julie Miller and Jerry and Donna Stone were indicted by a grand jury in September of 2024 for murder by parent, guardian, or custodian by failure or refusal to provide necessities, and child neglect result in death.

Mother, grandparents indicted in Kyneddi Miller’s death

Donna Stone’s trial date is scheduled for March 17. The prosecutor says that will likely get pushed back to April.

The grandfather was found incompetent to stand trial.

Previous coverage can be located here.