Reduced bond denied for mother of Boone County teenager found dead

MADISON, W.Va. (WCHS) — UPDATED - 3:40 p.m., 5/30/24

A reduced bond was denied for the mother of a girl who was found dead last month in Boone County.

A Boone County judge ruled that a $250,000 cash bond for Julie Ann Stone Miller, 49, was reasonable in the child neglect causing death case.

The judge said that if Miller is able to post the bond, she will have to go on home confinement.

Ron Walters Jr., for one of Miller's defense attorneys, argued that Miller's bond should have been lowered to $100,000 property, closer to that of her parents, who were also charged in 14-year-old Kyneddi Miller's death.

Walters alleged Kyneddi primarily lived with the grandparents and Julie's bond shouldn't be as high as it is. Both of the grandparents, Donna and Jerry Stone, have been released on $25,000 bonds.

Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Holstein went into graphic details about Kyneddi Miller's condition, sharing photos and saying it compared to starvation images from the Holocaust. He said she laid on the foam pad in the bathroom unable to move for four to five days. He said she was malnourished and was not fed or given medical care.

“This child was emaciated to a skeletal state and that is not an exaggeration," Holstein said to the court. "We’ve all seen Holocaust pictures. These pictures in my mind are worse than that.”

Holstein said the prosecution has a recorded jail phone call where Julie allegedly told her parents that Kyneddi "wanted to die" and that she does what Kyneddi wants.

ORIGINAL STORY

The mother of a teenage girl who is charged with child neglect resulting in her death wants a judge to reduce her bond.

Julie Ann Stone Miller, 49, of Morrisvale has been incarcerated since her arrest last month. Her daughter, Kyneddi Miller, 14, was found "emaciated to a skeletal state" on April 17.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Boone County Magistrate Court, deputies responded to a death call in the 400 block of Cameo Road in Morrisvale. Deputies said when they arrived at the home the teen was on a bathroom floor and on a foam pad.

The child's grandmother, Donna Stone, who was charged in the investigation earlier this month, told deputies that Kyneddi had not been able to function on her own for four to five days due to her physical state and had not been eating for months, according to the complaint. It's also alleged her health had been deteriorating for months or even years and she was suffering from an eating disorder.

Stone's husband, Jerry, has also been charged with child neglect with death. His preliminary hearing set for Thursday was continued after his attorney requested a mental evaluation. Donna Stone's hearing was waived to circuit court.

It's alleged the three didn't seek medical care for the girl before her death.

Last week, Miller's attorneys Ron Walters, Jr. and Beverly Hall filed a motion to reduce her $250,000 cash-only bond. In their motion, they said Miller agrees to any restrictive conditions of the bond, including home confinement.

"Defendant maintains her innocence of all charges in this matter," Walters and Hall said in the court filing.

They also noted that her parents, Jerry and Donna Stone, had $25,000 property or surety bonds set for the same charge. They were released on bond a day after their arrest after a family member posted $2,500 cash for each of them.

The attorneys also allege Miller did not live in the same home with her parents and Kyneddi. Investigators previously said the three lived in the same home as the child. Other family members have told Eyewitness News Miller lived in the home directly beside her parents.

"In fact, the minor child lived in the home of Donna and Jerry Stone; however, Ms. Miller’s bond remains significantly higher than the individuals who lived in the same household as the minor child. There are various issues with the information presented thus far from the State as to Ms. Miller’s culpability in this matter," the motion stated.

There is a hearing set for 2:30 p.m. on Thursday on the bond issue.