JEFFERSON COUNTY — A five-year-old boy is dead following a "medical emergency" north of Whitehall on Friday, April 24, 2026, and Kathryn Lesal Garaas has been arrested on a pending charge of homicide.
Several agencies responded to the scene, including the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, Jefferson Valley EMS, and deputies from the Madison County Sheriff's Office.
John Emeigh reports - watch the video here:
First responders provided medical aid to the child, but the boy did not survive.
Authorities have not yet released information about the cause of death.
Investigators took Garaas to the Jefferson County Detention Center in Boulder, where she remains jailed.
According to a GoFundMe fundraiser, the boy is Reign Tyler Blair, and Garaas is his mother; authorities on Monday confirmed both statements are accurate.
The fundraiser states:
I am asking with all of my heart for help for this wonderful Father, Tyler. The pain he carries is immeasurable, and no resolution can come that will ease it. Reign is his purpose, his love, and his life from the moment he took his first Breathe. There are no words for the kind of strength it takes for a man to be a single father, and the life he built for Reign is one we take solace in knowing was fulfilled with love, laughter, and precious joy. The worst days are yet to come, and the last thing Reign’s loved ones need added to this nightmare is the weight of simply trying to survive day to day.
Click here if you would like to donate.
Colleen Much, who is organizing the GoFundMe and speaking on behalf of the victim's family, said that Reign's mother has been separated from his father for years, but would occasionally spend time with her son.
She said the family never noticed Garaas being a threat to the child.
Much said Garaas had been staying with the boy for the past couple weeks without incident.
According to Much, the boy's father left for work on April 24th and later that morning received a disturbing text message from from Garaas.
He called 911 and first responders found the boy dead, according to Much.
Counseling is being offered to first-responders who were involved with this incident, according to Jefferson County Sheriff John Grimsrud.
During her initial court appearance on Monday, Garaas sometimes seemed detached and sometimes showed emotion.
The Montana Department of Justice's Division of Criminal Investigation is now leading the case.
Bail was set at $5 million dollars. No other details have been released at this point.
We will update you as we get more information.
