'The boys are together again:' Second son dies a week after mother's drowning attempt

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Monday, July 8, 2019
Second son dies a week after mother's drowning attempt, deputies say
A 7-year-old boy has died a week after his mother is accused of trying to drown him and his 12-year-old brother, the Tulare County sheriff's office says.

TULARE COUNTY, California -- Captured mid tickle fight, Jacob Telnas can be seen embracing his two boys Jackson and Jacob Ray Jr., a moment their grandmother, Diana Keeland, will treasure.

"My son lost his two children, I lost my two grandsons who were both so very precious to me," Keeland said.

Just one week after 12-year-old Jackson Telnas was killed, his brother 7-year-old Jacob Ray was taken off of life support at Valley Children's Hospital while surrounded by family.

RELATED: Mother accused of killing sons thought 'they were possessed by demons'

"They had an hour with Jacob Ray to love up on him, Jacob got a chance to spend time with him and tell him how much he loves him," Keeland said.

She said the only thing bringing her peace is knowing her boys are together again.

Keeland said the pair were inseparable, something seen in a video taken just six months ago of the two boys playing Marco Polo in a pool.

"I'm worried about my son and how he's going to deal with the loss of his two children and at the hand of their mother that makes it ten times worse," Keeland said.

According to the local officials, Jackson and Jacob Jr. were found unconscious in an irrigation ditch on June 29.

In a statement of probable cause filed on Tuesday, a sheriff's deputy wrote the boys' mother, 45-year-old Sherri Telnas, "said she drowned both her kids because they were possessed by demons."

In 2008, Telnas was charged with criminal endangerment after investigators said she tried to drown then 10-month-old Jackson.

RELATED: Family members outline troubled past of Sherri Telnas

"We're currently in the process of obtaining those court records and turning this over to the District Attorney's Office," said Sgt. Gary Marks.

An autopsy has been scheduled for Jacob Ray. A preliminary hearing for Sherri Telnas is set up for August 15th.

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