Mississippi daycare workers won’t face felony charges following viral arrests

ABERDEEN, Miss. (WTVA/WLBT) — A grand jury in Mississippi did not indict the four daycare workers with felonies following their viral arrests last year.

Monroe County Sheriff Kevin Crook confirmed Sierra McCandless, Oci-Anna Kilburn, Jennifer Newman and Shyenne Shelton will not face felony charges.

However, they still face misdemeanor charges.

(L-R): Sierra McCandless, Oci-Anna Kilburn, Jennifer Newman, Shyenne Shelton.(Monroe County Sheriff's Department)

Deputies arrested them in October after videos surfaced online of one of them using a Halloween mask to intentionally frighten young children at Lil’ Blessings Daycare in Hamilton, Mississippi.

Each suspect was originally charged with three counts of felony child abuse.

A fifth suspect was also arrested. Investigators charged Traci Hutson with failure to report abuse and simple assault against a minor, both of which are misdemeanors.

Videos of the children being scared instantly went viral across the globe, with the parents of a child seen in the video even appearing on The Dr. Phil Show.

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