Authorities say Matthew Whitton died after an intentional asphyxia event, not the food choking first reported.
CLEARWATER, Kan. — A medical examiner’s finding that a toddler died from intentionally inflicted oxygen loss has led prosecutors to charge his mother with first-degree felony murder months after his death was first reported as choking on food.
The charge against 31-year-old Shanna Kay Whitton centers on what doctors and investigators say was missing from the case: food in Matthew Jon Whitton’s airway. The 15-month-old boy was taken from a Clearwater apartment to a Wichita hospital Aug. 25, 2025, in extremely critical condition and died three days later. Prosecutors amended an existing arson case in April after the autopsy and detective work changed the legal direction of the investigation.
The first public account was a choking emergency. Crews were sent around 7 p.m. to Mimosa Arms Apartments, where Matthew was unconscious and not breathing. Deputies, Clearwater police officers, EMS workers and Clearwater firefighters responded. Officers began lifesaving measures before medical crews arrived, and Matthew was moved to the hospital. A choking call can turn on minutes, but this one later turned on months of investigation. The Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office said the final autopsy, completed Jan. 14, listed complications of hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy caused by intentionally inflicted asphyxia. The death was ruled a homicide.
Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy refers to brain injury caused when oxygen and blood flow are cut off or severely reduced. In Matthew’s case, authorities said the medical conclusion pointed to an intentional asphyxia event. Local reports said no food or foreign object was found in his airway by emergency responders, hospital staff or the medical examiner. That detail became a central fact because Whitton had reportedly described the emergency as a food choking. A neighbor later said the story changed from a meatball with spaghetti sauce to SpaghettiOs with sauce. Officials have not said whether that neighbor’s account appears in the amended complaint.
Prosecutors charged Whitton on April 13 with first-degree felony murder, abuse of a child, aggravated child endangerment and aggravated arson in connection with Matthew’s death. The murder charge was added to the same Sedgwick County case that began with arson allegations from a fire one month earlier. The amended complaint accused Whitton of blocking Matthew’s nose and mouth and impeding his normal breathing or circulation. It also tied her conduct to a July 26 fire in the boy’s bedroom. Whitton has not been convicted, and the charges remain allegations unless proved in court.
The July fire gave investigators another event to examine after Matthew died. Authorities said the fire started in his bedroom while he was inside. Fire investigators concluded it had been intentionally set. Because several apartments in the building were occupied, prosecutors originally filed six counts of aggravated arson and two counts of arson after Whitton’s Oct. 9 arrest. The arson case kept Whitton in custody while investigators continued to work through the boy’s death. By April 3, detectives had gathered enough findings to present the death investigation to the district attorney. Ten days later, the case was amended.
The timing shows why the autopsy carried such weight. Matthew died Aug. 28, but the final autopsy report was not issued until Jan. 14. Detectives then had to compare the medical finding with the emergency call, witness statements, hospital records and the earlier fire. Sheriff Jeff Easter said cases involving the death of a child are especially difficult and said detectives must be a “voice for children” who cannot speak. His statement also signaled that investigators were still working beyond Matthew’s death. The sheriff’s office said additional incidents involving Whitton, Matthew and another deceased child remain under review.
That other child was Whitton’s 2-year-old daughter, Gypsy Rose Whitton-Marley, who died in July 2024. Her death was initially ruled accidental choking after she reportedly ate grapes. Local reports said records tied to her case described multiple prior emergency calls, including a time she was found unresponsive near a plastic bag one day before the fatal choking report. Another report involved a fall from a couch when she was eight weeks old. The sheriff’s office has not announced new charges in Gypsy Rose’s death, and officials have not publicly said the earlier ruling has been changed.
The possible connection between the two children’s deaths has raised questions, but authorities have kept the public description narrow. The sheriff’s office confirmed that the broader review remains active and said new facts will be presented to prosecutors as they are uncovered. The statement did not accuse Whitton in the 2024 death. It also did not say whether investigators are reviewing child welfare records, medical providers’ notes or prior 911 audio. The known facts are that one child’s death has been ruled homicide, another child’s accidental choking death is under renewed scrutiny and the same mother is at the center of both investigations.
For prosecutors, the path ahead includes proving not only that Matthew died from homicide, but that Whitton committed the acts charged in the complaint. The first-degree felony murder count is paired with child abuse and endangerment allegations, while the arson counts add a separate set of facts from July. The case could involve medical testimony about oxygen loss, fire investigation evidence about the bedroom blaze and witness testimony about what was said before and after the 911 call. Whitton remained jailed on a $500,000 bond, and her next court hearing was set for May 7.
The apartment complex remains the common setting for two major events in the case. On July 26, investigators say fire was set in Matthew’s bedroom. On Aug. 25, first responders arrived for the report of an unconscious child. By Aug. 28, Matthew was dead. By April 13, his mother faced a murder count. The public record still leaves gaps, including who else was present at key moments, what investigators found inside the apartment and what defense evidence may be offered.
Matthew’s death is being prosecuted as a homicide, the July fire remains part of the same criminal case and the 2024 death of Gypsy Rose remains under review. Whitton’s next listed court date is May 7.
Author note: Last updated May 6, 2026.