A Kansas mother has been arrested after she allegedly killed her 15-month-old son by strangling him but told police he had choked on food.
Shanna Kay Whitton has been charged with one count each of felony first-degree murder, abuse of a child, aggravated child endangerment, and aggravated arson in connection with the death of her son Matthew Whitton, the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office confirmed in a press release.
Whitton, 31, was originally charged with eight arson-related offenses in October 2025.
The incident took place on August 25, 2025, at the Mimosa Arms Apartments in Clearwater, Kansas.
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The Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office said that officers responded to the home after the boy reportedly choked on food. Upon their arrival, the officers found the boy unconscious and not breathing. They performed lifesaving efforts until EMS personnel arrived and he was rushed to a hospital in Wichita. Matthew was admitted in extremely critical condition, and he died three days later.
An investigation was launched into Matthew’s death, and detectives reviewed a fire that took place at the apartment building in July 2025, according to KAKE.
Authorities then learned that the fire had been started in Matthew’s bedroom while the boy was inside. Fire investigators ultimately determined that the fire had been intentionally set, according to authorities.
Matthew’s autopsy was completed in January and the medical examiner’s office determined he died of complications from hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy caused by an intentionally inflicted asphyxia event. In other words, Matthew was intentionally deprived of oxygen.
In light of the findings, Matthew’s manner of death was ruled a homicide.
Whitton remains in custody following her arrest. It is not currently clear if she has entered a plea or retained legal counsel following her arrest.
The latest criminal complaint states that the defendant has been accused of impeding “the normal breathing or circulation of the blood by blocking the nose and/or mouth of” her son in August 2025. Whitton was also accused of placing Matthew in a “situation in which the child’s life, body or health is endangered” at the time of the fire.
“They took him out on the gurney and he never came back home,” Whitton’s downstairs neighbor recently told KAKE about Matthew’s death.
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The neighbor added that Whitton initially said Matthew choked after eating food, though noted that there were inconsistencies in her story.
“First, she told people it was a meatball from spaghetti with sauce,” the neighbor said. “Then the Spaghetti-Os with sauce in it.”
Detectives previously presented their findings on Matthew’s death to the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office earlier in April.
“These investigations take time because we have a responsibility to get them right,” Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter told KAKE. “Our detectives are committed to putting the pieces together and being a voice for children who can’t speak for themselves.”
Easter added that detectives are also investigating the death of Whitton’s 2-year-old daughter, Gypsy Rose, who died in July 2024. He said that detectives will inform prosecutors of additional details as they become available.