Sumner County Murder Defendant Living In Ark City While Out On Bond; Having Baby

By TRACY McCUE and SHANE FARLEY

Sumner County murder defendant Shelby Johnson will live in Ark City while out on bond and awaiting trial. Johnson is pregnant with a baby due Nov. 1.

Johnson, 26, posted a $100,000 professional surety bond Tuesday and was released from the Sumner County Jail. She made a court appearance Thursday where bond conditions were discussed.

She will be required to wear a GPS monitoring device at all times. That device is different from an electronic monitoring system usually set up by the courts but equally effective, her attorney, Chrystal Krier told the court.

Johnson has been charged with first-degree murder, an alternative count of second-degree murder and other charges in the April death of her daughter, 7-month-old Jesslinn Hulett. In the criminal complaint, Johnson is accused of abusing the child and ignoring Hulett’s need for immediate medical attention.

The baby’s death has been ruled a homicide.

Johnson’s bond had been set at $250,000 but it was reduced to $100,000. Judge Scott McQuin has continued her case until Nov. 29, so that she can have her baby.

Bond conditions restrict Johnson’s travel to Cowley County, where she lives; Sedgwick County, where her doctor is located; and Sumner County, for court appearances.

Johnson was living in Oxford at the time of the alleged crime, which prosecutors said occurred in Wellington.

At the Thursday’s court hearing, Johnson, requested that she be allowed access to her former companion’s place so she could pick up her belongings – including her clothes. Her attorney also asked if she could attend a college class for two six-hour days as part of her online computer course.

The judge granted both of those requests.