Two people charged in the July death of a 2-month-old baby who had been living in a sweltering, feces-filled Manderson camper have pleaded not guilty to seven total charges.
Travis Study, 57, the infant's grandfather, pleaded not guilty to five charges during his arraignment Tuesday in Big Horn County District Court. Destynie Study, 22, the baby's mother, pleaded not guilty to two charges in Big Horn County Circuit Court on July 8.
Travis Study faces one felony count of endangering a child through exposure to methamphetamine, along with four misdemeanor charges: Reckless endangerment, endangering a child, possession of methamphetamine and possession of marijuana.
Destynie Study faces misdemeanor charges of reckless endangering and endangering a child. Her next court appearance is a pretrial conference scheduled for 3 p.m. Nov. 25.
A four-day jury trial for Travis Study is expected to be scheduled within 180 days. He remains jailed on a $75,000 cash-only bond.
The charges stem from conditions investigators say they discovered after the infant's death July 6.
The family's camper had no running water, a broken air conditioner and sewage system, and measured about 95 degrees inside. Investigators reported human waste, urine and feces throughout the home, along with a urine-soaked crib and drug paraphernalia.
The Morning The Baby Died
The investigation began just after 10 a.m. July 6, when agents with the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation were notified of the suspicious, unattended death of an infant.
Destynie Study told investigators she fed and changed her 2-month-old daughter around 1:30 a.m., then put her back to sleep in a crib.
She said she awakened around 9:45 a.m. and found the baby unresponsive.
Destynie grabbed the infant, got into her father's vehicle and started driving toward Three Rivers Hospital in Basin, calling 911 along the way.
By the time DCI Special Agent Anthony Giles arrived at the hospital, investigators were already documenting what they saw.
Dirt covered Destynie's arms, legs and clothing, according to an affidavit, and investigators reported what appeared to be lice eggs or significant dandruff near her scalp.
"An overwhelming smell of body odor, urine and feces was coming from her person and the room," Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation Special Agent Anthony Giles wrote.
Investigators reported finding dirt beneath the infant's fingernails. The same odor came from the baby's body.
"The infant's diaper was completely saturated in urine," Giles wrote.
Investigators also reported a small amount of feces and a live insect moving inside the diaper after it was removed.
The baby had lived in the Manderson camper with Destynie, Travis and another child who was just over 1 year old.
What investigators found later that day inside that camper became the foundation for the charges now moving through two Big Horn County courts.
Inside The Camper
Armed with a search warrant, DCI agents went to the camper that afternoon.
Several black garbage bags that investigators believed were recently placed there were sitting outside.
When agents opened the door, they reported being hit by the same overwhelming odor of urine, feces and body odor they had encountered at the hospital.
Investigators found a 5-gallon bucket containing human waste in the bathroom.
The crib where Destynie said the baby slept was damp and smelled strongly of urine.
Investigators reported finding urine-soaked bedding and a soiled diaper underneath the mattress. Liquid had pooled inside the crib's frame, and when investigators lifted it, more foul-smelling liquid drained from the support structure.
Garbage bags outside the camper contained baby food and a comforter investigators believed was heavily soiled with urine and feces.
The DCI affidavit says agents recovered more than 21 grams of suspected marijuana and a glass pipe containing white crystalline residue.
Both Travis and Destynie told investigators that Travis regularly helped care for the children when Destynie was away.
Travis described what he did as "normal grandpa stuff."
A Warning Over The Phone
Investigators also documented a warning allegedly made by Travis while Destynie was at the hospital.
Travis remained on speakerphone while they interviewed his daughter.
When agents asked to take Destynie's cellphone as evidence to help establish a timeline, Travis allegedly said he didn't know what might happen if someone carrying a badge or gun showed up at his property.
It would be "a bad day for that individual," he allegedly said.
The conditions investigators documented July 6 weren't the first time authorities had concerns about the family.
Court records outline four contacts involving the Wyoming Department of Family Services and Manderson police beginning in April.
During one visit, officials investigating concerns about the family's living conditions were denied entry to the camper.
Another welfare check came after reports that Destynie had missed prenatal appointments during what investigators described as a high-risk pregnancy.
During another contact, a caseworker reported that the family's Jeep smelled strongly of cat urine and was filled with debris.
Access Denied
By late May, DFS had received reports that the infant had lost 11% of her body weight and that Destynie had missed a medical appointment.
When caseworkers and police returned to the property, investigators say they were again denied access to the camper.
Travis allegedly told them to "get the f*** off his property and never come back."
Less than two months later, Destynie told investigators she awakened to find her daughter unresponsive in the crib.
The affidavit does not identify an official cause or manner of death, and neither Travis nor Destynie Study is charged with intentionally causing the infant's death.
The investigation remains ongoing.
Kolby Fedore can be reached at kolby@cowboystatedaily.com.
