Medical findings and a timeline from inside Tammra Straughter’s home became central to the prosecution that ended with a life sentence.
REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio — The case that sent home day care operator Tammra R. Straughter to prison for life turned on what happened during several hours in October 2023, when a 5-month-old boy arrived in her care and later developed signs of a devastating head injury.
A Franklin County jury convicted Straughter, 54, on Aug. 20 of murder and endangering children in the death of Kashan Roman Crawford-Chatman. Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Bill Sperlazza sentenced her Oct. 7 to life in prison with parole eligibility after 15 years. The sentencing capped a prosecution built around medical evidence, the child’s condition during the day and information recovered during the investigation.
Kashan and his twin brother had been born prematurely and spent several weeks receiving hospital care before going home. On Oct. 9, 2023, their mother brought the boys to Straughter’s Reynoldsburg home for child care. Prosecutors later said Straughter was caring for Kashan, his twin and six other children without another adult present.
According to statements made by prosecutors in court, video recovered from inside the home showed Kashan appearing normal earlier in the day. His condition changed during the afternoon. Emergency crews were called after the infant had breathing difficulties, beginning a series of medical visits that ended with his transfer to Nationwide Children’s Hospital.
At an urgent care facility, Kashan became limp and required emergency treatment, prosecutors said. He was later transferred to the children’s hospital, where physicians identified severe head trauma and other injuries. Kashan eventually progressed to brain death and died Oct. 13, four days after he had been taken to Straughter’s home.
The Franklin County Coroner’s Office ruled the death a homicide caused by a head injury. At Straughter’s 2024 arraignment, a prosecutor told the court that the deputy coroner who performed the autopsy believed the findings strongly pointed to abusive head trauma caused by violent shaking. That medical assessment became a key part of the state’s account of what happened to Kashan.
Straughter gave investigators a different explanation for the medical emergency. Authorities said she reported that Kashan had been fussy and appeared to have trouble breathing after having formula. Accounts from the investigation said she described trying to help the infant when he appeared to be choking or having difficulty breathing.
Investigators also searched Straughter’s phone. Court-related reporting said they found deleted messages in which she complained about the twins being fussy. The messages did not themselves show what happened to Kashan, but they became part of the broader evidence prosecutors presented as they reconstructed the hours before his medical crisis.
There was no video showing Straughter inflicting the fatal injuries, according to reporting on the case. Instead, prosecutors relied on the infant’s medical condition, the chronology of the day, evidence recovered from the home and phone, and testimony about who was caring for Kashan when his condition deteriorated.
Straughter was indicted in February 2024 on murder and endangering-children charges. A not-guilty plea was entered on her behalf at arraignment. Her attorney noted that Kashan and his brother had been born prematurely, while the prosecution focused on the medical findings that authorities said could not be explained by an ordinary illness or routine child care.
The case took more than two years from indictment to trial. Jurors ultimately accepted the prosecution’s case and convicted Straughter on both counts in August 2026. Sperlazza’s October sentence gives her the possibility of parole after a minimum of 15 years and included credit for 54 days she had already served.
The sentencing closes the trial phase of a case that began with a medical emergency at a Reynoldsburg home and developed into a homicide investigation. Straughter’s conviction and sentence remain subject to the normal post-conviction and appellate process.
Author note: Last updated Oct. 11, 2026.