Whitman Mother Charged With Manslaughter In Death Of 2-Year-Old Daughter

BOSTON (CBS) – The mother of a toddler from Whitman is being held on bail, now charged with manslaughter in the girl's death. Shaniqua Leonard pleaded not guilty Tuesday morning to the upgraded charges.

The 29-year-old was previously charged with reckless endangerment in the death of two-year-old Lyric Farrell. Prosecutors upgraded the charges after the autopsy results came back.

Lyric's paternal grandmother spoke outside court after the arraignment. "We're happy that they're keeping her and we are waiting for justice for Lyric and after that we are going to start seeing if we can get justice with DCF," Sharon Farrell said. "They should have never given Lyric back to her mother."

Prosecutors say Lyric was a healthy two-year-old girl just weeks before being returned to her mother by the Department of Children and Families.