Two people were taken into custody early Friday after a pre-dawn search warrant was executed at a home in the Pond Bank area of Chambersburg. According to county records, the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, working with a U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force, carried out the operation and arrested two adults who are now being held in the Franklin County jail on warrants out of Howard County, Maryland.
What officials say
As reported by Tri-State Alert, the people arrested were identified as Kathleen Arrah Amesbury and Dale Allen Brown Jr. Howard County warrants accuse each of first-degree child abuse resulting in the death of a child under 13, conspiracy to commit first-degree child abuse resulting in death, and related second-degree child abuse counts. Local accounts say deputies served the warrant at roughly 6:30 a.m. and that both were taken directly to the county jail.
Possible connection to a 3-year-old's death in Baltimore
A GoFundMe page organized under the name "Kathleen Amesbury" in March 2025 seeks donations for the funeral of a 3-year-old in Baltimore, according to GoFundMe. The fundraiser lists Serenity Funeral Home and was posted in late March 2025, suggesting the Maryland matter dates back at least a year. Those public fundraising details, however, are not the same as an arrest affidavit or any official court filing.
Charges, dockets and potential penalties
Tri-State's reporting also lists case identifiers MJ-39307-CR-0000072-2026 and MJ-39307-CR-0000071-2026, noting that both defendants were booked on arrest before requisition charges and denied bail. Under Maryland sentencing guidance, first-degree child abuse that results in the death of a child under 13 is a felony punishable by up to life in prison, underscoring the severity of the allegations; see Scribd for the stated range in the Maryland Sentencing Guidelines Manual.
What happens next
The two remain in Franklin County Jail awaiting requisition by Maryland authorities and initial processing in the county's magisterial system. Franklin County court calendars typically handle early procedural hearings and transfer steps for out-of-state warrants; similar matters appear on the public docket through the Franklin County Court schedule.
