A Pekin woman is facing a serious felony charge after a two-year girl died in her care.
The Washington County Sheriff’s Department responded to a Poplar Street address in Pekin after receiving a 911 call reporting an unresponsive child just after midnight Tuesday morning.
The child was immediately transported to St. Vincent’s Hospital and pronounced dead by the coroner’s office.
Officers then obtained a search warrant for the residence as part of the investigation and spoke with 30-year-old Sarah Marie Bierly, the live-in girlfriend of the child’s father, as well as other family members at the scene.
The investigation continued at the Washington County Jail, where Sarah Bierly was arrested for Neglect of a Dependent Causing Death, a Level 1 Felony.
An autopsy is scheduled for later this afternoon.
This case is still under investigation and will be updated as information becomes available.
