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Manslaughter charges were filed on Tuesday in Hall County Court against a couple believed to be responsible for the suffocation death of a 7-week-old girl.
Tiffany Ann Bohlen, also known as Tiffany Balch, 19, and Christopher Mathes Klein, 20, both of 119 W. 11th St., were arrested for the death of Caitlynne Bohlen on Thursday.
They both appeared in court on Friday but weren't charged until Tuesday.
Also on Tuesday, Bohlen posted bond and was released from jail. Hall County Judge Philip Martin lowered Bohlen's bond from 10 percent of $250,000 to 10 percent of $25,000 and ordered her to live with her parents.
Bohlen appeared in court Tuesday morning with David Jorgensen, a Kearney attorney hired to represent her. On Friday, Hall County Judge David Bush had appointed the Hall County public defender's office to defend her.
Bush appointed the Nebraska Commission on Public Advocacy to represent Klein.
Both Klein and Bohlen were initially scheduled for arraignment today in county court. Bohlen's appearance has been waived, and her preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. May 7.
It was unclear from court documents whether Klein will be in court today. As of Tuesday afternoon, he remained in the Hall County Jail on a bond of 10 percent of $250,000.
In court on Friday, Deputy Hall County Attorney Bob Cashoili said Klein gave the infant a pacifier on Feb. 27, wrapped her face tightly with a blanket and squeezed her against the side of her bassinet with a pillow.
Cashoili said Klein, who wasn't the infant's father, learned the technique from Bohlen, who was the baby's mother.
Cashoili didn't say why the couple used the method on the baby, whether it was to quiet her or to harm her.
Law enforcement and paramedics were called to the home at about 10 p.m. Feb. 27 after the baby was found not breathing. She was taken to St. Francis Medical Center, where she died a short time later.
Nebraska law defines manslaughter, the charge the couple faces, as the unlawful killing of another without malice, either upon a sudden quarrel or while in the commission of an unlawful act.
Manslaughter carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison upon conviction.
Klein also faces a charge of violating the Sex Offender Registration Act. He moved to Grand Island several months ago from the Minneapolis area and failed to register here, Cashoili said.
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