A Cincinnati couple will spend 90 days at the River City Correctional Center after pleading guilty in the 2025 drowning death of their 5-month-old son. On Wednesday, a judge also placed Degary Burbridge and Kiara Nettles on five years of probation, a relatively short stint behind bars that has already raised questions among neighbors and child-safety advocates about how quickly a routine bath can turn deadly for an infant.
Prosecutors say the baby was left alone in a small tub filled with water in May 2025. A third person in the home asked about the child, prompting the parents to check and find their son face down and unresponsive. Hamilton County Prosecutor Connie Pillich has called the death “entirely preventable” and warned, “There is absolutely no justification for leaving an infant unattended near water, under any circumstances.” As reported by WKRC, Burbridge and Nettles reached a deal that dropped involuntary manslaughter counts in exchange for guilty pleas, leading to the 90-day term followed by probation.
Sentence and plea deal
The plea agreement narrowed the charges the couple faced and removed the risk of a much longer prison sentence if they had gone to trial and been convicted. Prosecutors had initially pursued more serious counts after the May 2025 incident. The deal ultimately capped the case with a short stay in local custody and five years of supervised probation instead of a lengthy time in state prison. Court filings from both sides indicate that the agreement was offered and accepted to resolve the case without a contested trial.
Drowning risk and prevention
Drowning remains a leading cause of unintentional injury death for young children, and public-health officials repeatedly stress the need for constant, arm’s-reach supervision around any standing water. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 through 4 and that many drownings happen quickly and silently, and it offers resources on supervision and water-safety measures as per CDC.
Research shows that infants are at particular risk in the home, with studies finding that children younger than 1 are most likely to drown in bathtubs and that many of those incidents involve brief lapses in supervision. A population study published in BMJ Open identified bathtubs as a prominent location for infant drownings and underscored the need for uninterrupted supervision and simple safety steps.
Safety experts say this case is a painful reminder that even a few seconds of inattention can be fatal. Caregivers are urged to keep infants within arm’s reach during baths, eliminate distractions, and have a reachable phone for emergencies. Local reporting and court records provided the details for this story, and public-health guidance remains the best available tool for reducing the risk of similar tragedies.
