More details revealed in Bartow drowning

Bartow County mother charged in death of son, 3, who drown in pool.

A judge says four children were left alone 14 hours before a 3-year-old boy got into a swimming pool and drowned.

Four young children were left without supervision or food for at least 14 hours before a 3-year-old boy drowned in an above-ground swimming pool outside the family’s Bartow County home, a judge said Wednesday.

Bobbie Jessica Prather didn’t have an attorney and said little during her first court appearance. Prather, 32, was arrested and charged with felony murder Monday, hours after the toddler was found unresponsive in the pool, according to police. A 4-year-old and 1-year-old twins were also in the home allegedly unattended.

Prather also faces four counts of first-degree cruelty to children — one charge for each child, bringing the total to five felonies. When asked in court if she understood the charges, Prather said “No” and listened as Chief Magistrate Judge Brandon Bryson read them aloud. She was denied bond and will remain at the Bartow jail.

On Monday, police and paramedics were called to a Canter Lane home, near Cartersville, shortly after 1:30 p.m., according to Bartow EMS director Brad Cothran. A deputy pulled the boy from the pool, but the child was unconscious and not breathing, Cothran said.

Paramedics determined the child had been underwater too long to be resuscitated, Cothran said. Just after 6 p.m., Prather was arrested. The boy was identified

as Jagger Settles.

“Most of us are parents, and (when) we respond to something like this, of course, it affects you, because everyone loves children,” Bartow County Sheriff ’s Office Sgt. Jonathan Rogers told Channel 2 Action News. “Children rely on us for safety, security and comfort.”

Details on where Prather was while her children were allegedly unsupervised have not been released.

Prather’s other three children were removed from the home and placed in protective custody, where they remained Wednesday, Rogers said. The children’s father, who also lived in the home, was arrested Tuesday on unrelated charges, he said.

The state Division of Family and Children Service is assisting with the investigation. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is conducting an autopsy on the boy.

Additional charges are possible pending the outcome of the investigation, police said.

BOB ANDRES / AJC Bobbie Prather, the Bartow County mom charged with murder in the drowning death of her 3-year-old, made her first court appearance Wednesday. She is also charged with cruelty to children.

BOB ANDRES / BANDRES@AJC. COM Bobbie Prather of Bartow County was charged with murder in the drowning death of her 3-yearold son.