South St. Paul mother sentenced to jail in death of infant

Published 3:05 pm Saturday, September 3, 2016

ST. PAUL — A judge has sentenced a South St. Paul mother to three months in jail for the smothering death of her infant daughter.

Thirty-two-year-old Jessica Lee Grass also will be on probation for 10 years. Grass had been charged with manslaughter.

Police were called to the woman’s home in June of 2015 and found an unresponsive 5-month-old girl.

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The complaint says Grass told police she found the baby, Vaida Rose, unconscious with her face against a pillow on a bed. Prosecutors said Grass later said she might have rolled on her daughter while they were asleep. The complaint says controlled substances were found in the mother’s system.

Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said co-sleeping with an infant is dangerous, and that danger increases if drugs or alcohol are involved.