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Father of baby to be charged in infant’s death
new_deh_infant murder cody reed mug.jpg
Cody Lane Reed

Charges are expected to be filed soon against a Great Bend man in connection with the January death of his 5-month-old daughter, Great Bend Police Chief David Bailey said Wednesday morning.

Cody Lane Reed, 20, is currently incarcerated in the Barton County Detention Center in lieu of $250,000 bond. Formal charges in connection with the infant’s death will be filed by the Barton County Attorney’s Office, but as of Wednesday evening they had not been filed, a spokesman for County Attorney Levi Morris said.

The Great Bend Police Department’s daily incident log shows Reed was transported to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation office on Monday morning.

He was booked into the Barton County Jail on Tuesday on a charge of second-degree murder.

According to Bailey, at about 8:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 28, the Great Bend Police Department and the Great Bend Fire and EMS responded to an apartment located in the 1300 block of Cherry Place in reference to an unresponsive 5-month-old female, now identified as Lettizia Reed. The infant was then transported to The University of Kansas Medical Health Systems - Great Bend Emergency Room. 

Life-saving measures were attempted on scene and at the hospital, but she was then flown to Wesley Medical Center in Wichita where she remained in critical condition. On Thursday, Jan. 31, baby Lettizia died as a result of her injuries. 

An autopsy was performed in Wichita. Although complete autopsy results are pending, the cause of death was listed as blunt force trauma to the head, Bailey said. 

The incident is still under investigation by the Great Bend Police Department and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call the Great Bend Police Department, 620-793-4120, or Crime Stoppers, 620-792-1300.