A Bagley woman pled guilty Tuesday, July 2 in Beltrami County District Court to murdering her 2-month-old cousin in June 2018.
Sarah Leah Kortan, 31, pled guilty to a felony charge of second degree murder without intent while committing a felony (child endangerment), according to online court documents. As part of a plea agreement, it is expected that a felony second degree murder charge and another felony charge of second degree murder without intent while committing a felony will be dismissed.
The case had initially been set for a trial Monday, Aug. 19. Sentencing has been set for Monday, Sept. 23.
The charge stemmed from the death of Josephine Taylor Kortan, 2 months, who was under Kortan’s care at her apartment June 20, 2018. At the time, Kortan was living at Prairie Rose Apartments in Red Lake Falls. The baby was the daughter of Kortan’s cousin, who was in prison at the time and had given custody to Kortan. The case was later moved to Beltrami County.
The girl suffered blunt force injuries to her head and neck, and multiple skull fractures, retinal hemorrhages in both eyes, and detachment in her eyes, according to the amended complaint. A University of North Dakota forensic pathologist determined that these injuries were inconsistent with an accidental fall. The forensic pathologist also found that the injuries were the result of inflicted trauma. He noted the injuries were concerning and involved, at the very least, careless handling of a 2-month-old non-mobile child, who Kortan said, had suffered at least three falls in a short period of time.
The Red Lake County Sheriff’s Office had been dispatched to Kortan’s apartment at about 6:38 p.m. June 20, 2018. The caller said the girl wasn’t breathing. The baby was later transported to Sanford Medical Center in Thief River Falls and then airlifted to Sanford Hospital in Fargo, N.D. Two days later, Josephine Kortan was taken off of life support and died.
At the time of the incident, Kortan was advertising on Facebook that she was seeking to provide daycare. She was caring for two older children, ages 8 and 12, as an unlicensed daycare provider at the time of the incident.