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Kenosha Mother Charged With First-Degree Homicide in 2022 Death of 6-Year-Old

A judge reclassified the 2022 death as homicide based on new investigative findings.

Overview

  • Prosecutors in Kenosha County, which filed charges Tuesday, accused Christina L. Torchia of first-degree intentional homicide in her daughter Layla Stahl’s death.
  • Deputies found Layla, 6, unresponsive in her bedroom on April 20, 2022 at a home on 15th Place, and medical examiners from Kenosha and Milwaukee listed the cause and manner as undetermined.
  • Investigators reopened the case in early 2026, reviewed evidence, re-interviewed witnesses, and said they developed significant new information, which the sheriff said showed persistent work on the case.
  • Detectives interviewed Torchia on March 12 and reported numerous inconsistencies in her account that they said were contradicted by evidence.
  • A Kenosha County judge approved changing the manner of death to homicide, allowing the charge to proceed after the district attorney sought the order.