KC mom — accused of decapitating 6-year-old — is fit for trial, health officials say

Note: this story contains graphic descriptions of violence.

Nearly two years after a Kansas City mother was charged with murder in the gruesome killing of her 6-year-old son, the Missouri Department of Mental Health is asking the court to resume proceedings in the criminal case.

Tasha Haefs, 37, has been in the custody of the Missouri Department of Mental Health since the case was stalled in the summer of 2022. A judge temporarily ordered a suspension upon a finding that Haefs lacked the capacity to understand the government’s case or substantially participate in her own defense.

Last week, the state health department’s attorney filed a redacted mental health report along with its motion. A judge must make a ruling for the case to resume.

Haefs’ competence was re-evaluated after several months of treatment, according to Michael Mansur, a spokesman with Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office.

In February 2022, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker pledged her office would do everything in its power to “bring justice” for 6-year-old Karvel Stevens.

“It takes our breath away,” Baker said of the “terrible details” of the child’s death, in a statement two years ago.

Haefs is represented by the Missouri Public Defender’s Office. Her attorney did not respond to The Star’s requests for comment.

Gruesome scene described in police search warrant

Kansas City police officers were called to the 7300 block of Indiana Avenue shortly before midnight on Feb. 15, 2022, in response to a disturbance. A 911 call had come in from a woman who reported “the devil was trying to attack her,” according to a police affidavit filed in Jackson County Circuit Court.

Arriving officers saw blood leading up from the sidewalk to the front door, the affidavit says, and heard what sounded like a woman singing inside the residence. The singing grew louder as they knocked.

Through a window, one of the officers saw what appeared to be a severed head inside. The officers forced their way into the home based on the belief that the children and woman inside were in danger, the affidavit said.

Police entered the rear door of the home to find Haefs on the kitchen floor, the affidavit said, with blood on her hands and feet. The affidavit said officers saw the severed head of a child near the rest of his body outside the kitchen.

According to the affidavit, Haefs admitted to officers that she killed her son, Karvel, in a bathtub. After searching the home, police found a decapitated dog in the basement.

In an interview with The Star two years ago, relatives of Haefs said she spent years battling drug addiction, depression, severe trauma and hallucinations.

Haefs’ attorney will appear for a case management conference March 29 in Division 3 of Jackson County Circuit Court.

According to state statutes, legal counsel for the department of mental health can participate in hearings on motions to proceed. Haefs and her attorney will have the opportunity to contest the motion.

If the court finds the accused mentally fit to proceed after a hearing on the motion, the statute states, the criminal proceedings shall resume.

This story includes reporting from The Star’s Bill Lukitsch, Matti Gellman and Anna Spoerre.