Ottawa woman charged with injuring a baby to stand trial Aug. 26

An Ottawa woman will stand trial Aug. 26 for allegedly injuring a baby to whom she was not the mother.

Rachyl M. Newell, 25, appeared Friday in La Salle County Circuit Court and entered a not guilty plea to two counts of aggravated battery, a Class 3 felony carrying a possible prison sentence of two to five years.

She next will appear Aug. 15 for a motions hearing and Aug. 22 for a final pretrial conference.

Newell is out of custody after being released from the La Salle County Jail with conditions, including that she not have contact with the infant identified only by its initials.

Ottawa police issued a news release May 3 saying that officers were alerted to the infant’s injuries by staff at OSF St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Ottawa, where the child “arrived at the emergency department with several injuries.” Court records allege that Newell squeezed the baby and shook the infant’s crib.

La Salle County State’s Attorney Joe Navarro previously termed the child’s injuries as “significant” and said further charges remain under review.