A Kershaw County, South Carolina babysitter, Jacob Ray Wescott, received a 33-year prison sentence after a jury convicted him of homicide by child abuse in the 2020 death of 10-month-old Baby Jack.​
Incident Timeline
On March 9, 2020, emergency responders rushed to Wescott’s Pine Grove Road home when the infant stopped breathing; firefighters performed CPR outside. Wescott, then 23, claimed he fed the baby formula, they napped for 90 minutes, then the child began “spazzing out,” leading a witness to call 911. Two other minors were present; the boy was transferred from Kershaw Health to Prisma Health Children’s Hospital before life support ended on March 11.
Medical Findings
Doctors identified extensive head and body injuries, including a brain bleed and multiple bruises, consistent with abusive head trauma (formerly shaken baby syndrome). An autopsy confirmed non-accidental causes; Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office and SLED’s Child Fatality Unit investigated.
Legal Outcome
Convicted February 9, 2026, Wescott was sentenced by Circuit Judge Milton G. Kimpson to 33 years in the South Carolina Department of Corrections. Kershaw County Sheriff Lee Boan noted support for the grieving mother, whose family friend described her planning cremation instead of a first birthday.
