Jennifer Fortner, left; Kenneth Fortner, right / Cullman County Sheriff’s Office
Updated 3-7-18 at 4 p.m.
HOLLY POND – A man and woman from Holly Pond have been arrested and charged with aggravated child abuse following the death of a juvenile.
Kenneth Allen Fortner, 37, and Jennifer Denise Fortner, 37, were taken into custody on Monday.
According to a media release from the Cullman County Sheriff’s Office, the arrests stemmed from a call to the Fortners’ residence on Feb. 23, 2018 regarding the death of a juvenile.
“After arriving on the scene deputies determined that the condition and environment of the home was unsanitary due to filth and neglect, which appeared to have accumulated over a long period of time,” said the release.
The Cullman County Department of Human Resources was then notified to respond to the residence.
Court documents obtained Wednesday state that Jennifer and Kenneth Fortner “did torture, willfully abuse, cruelly beat or otherwise willfully maltreat the said child…on numerous occasions failed to provide adequate food and/or care resulting in open wounds, malnourishment and/or emaciation leading to death.”
The CCSO said the exact cause and manner of juvenile’s death could not be determined and is pending further forensic analysis. Results of an autopsy are pending.
The Fortners are being held in the Cullman County Detention Center, each on a $50,000 cash bond.
Kenneth Fortner Complaint by cullmansense on Scribd
Jennifer Fortner Complaint by cullmansense on Scribd
Copyright 2018 Humble Roots, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
