Mother accused of murder

Fred Petke

A Winchester mother is in jail today, facing murder charges for her 4-year-old adopted daughter’s death in May.

Clark County sheriff’s deputies served an arrest warrant Thursday evening for 34-year-old Jessilyn C. Robinson of 1287 McClure Road, charging her with wanton murder, Sheriff Berl Perdue said.

Robinson’s daughter, Faith Raeanne Robinson, died at the University of Kentucky Medical Center on May 29, a day after her mother called 911 and said her daughter fell in the bathtub, Perdue said.

The report from the medical examiner’s office said the child died from a closed head injury consistent with being shaken, he said. The injuries were not consistent with a fall, he said.

Perdue said Faith Robinson was small for her age and had some developmental issues.

“It’s a sad situation,” Perdue remarked.

Jessilyn Robinson was the only adult home at the time of the incident, according to Perdue.

“The father was not in the house at the time,” Perdue said. “He was at work.”

Officers also searched the family’s home and found no weapons. The medical examiner report did not mention that a weapon had been used, he said.

Perdue was waiting on the medical examiner’s final report before proceeding with the warrants. The report arrived last week.

“We still have a little more work to do,” Perdue said. “After conferring with the commonwealth’s attorney and the county attorney, we went ahead and obtained warrants (Thursday) night.”

Jessilyn Robinson was arrested at Man O’ War Apartments on Lexington Avenue at approximately 7 p.m. Thursday, he said. She did not make any statements to police.

Detectives hadn’t interviewed Jessilyn Robinson since shortly after her daughter’s death, Perdue said. At that time, her story was consistently that Faith Robinson fell in the bathtub, he said.

The child showed no other wounds or injuries, he said. The family has lived in Clark County for approximately a year, and Perdue was not aware of any other problems or investigations concerning the family.

Contact Fred Petke at fpetke@winchestersun.com.