Grandmother and Parents Knocked Out Children’s Teeth, Caused Skull Fractures, Broken Ribs and More.
A Kentucky grandmother and the parents of two young children have been arrested and charged with horrific crimes against their own children.
Nicholas Shanks, 27, and Shelby Kuntz, 25, were arrested on January 15, 2026, after their 2-year-old child was brought to the hospital in full cardiac arrest. Medical staff at Norton Children’s Hospital later determined the child had an occipital skull fracture, several missing teeth, healing rib fractures, extensive bruising, severe anemia from blood loss, and elevated levels indicating injuries to muscles, the pancreas, and the liver, per court records cited by WLKY. No 911 call was made, and the child was transported by private means, police said.
Authorities then visited the couple’s home where they found a 1-year-old child lying on a bed with obvious signs of trauma. The younger child was rushed to the hospital, where examinations revealed up to three possible skull fractures, a possible jawbone fracture, a liver injury, lacerations above both eyes, at least one missing tooth, severe anemia from blood loss into the head, belly, and soft tissues, and signs of being extremely underweight or emaciated.
The children’s paternal grandmother, Yvonne Shanks, 49, was arrested after allegedly admitting she had seen injuries on the 1-year-old that morning but did not call police or seek medical treatment.
Nicholas Shanks and Shelby Kuntz each face two counts each of first-degree assault (domestic violence), first-degree criminal abuse of a child under 12, first-degree wanton endangerment, and endangering the welfare of a minor, with bonds set at $500,000.
Yvonne Shanks is charged with complicity to those offenses, with a bond of $250,000, per WDRB. All three have pleaded not guilty.
Louisville Metro Police Chief Paul Humphrey described the case as involving “the lowest of the low,” adding, “There’s a special place in hell for people like that.”
