JEFFERSON COUNTY — For the second time in less than five years, a Jefferson County jury has found a 26-year-old Mt. Vernon woman guilty in connection with the brutal 2017 beating of her infant son.

Abagail Adkins was convicted in 2018 of the Class X felony charge of aggravated child abuse resulting in permanent disability and was later sentenced to 20 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections, as was the baby’s father Tyrone Steele.

However, Adkins appealed her conviction and the Fifth Appellate Court in Mt. Vernon vacated her conviction after ruling she received ineffective counsel and remanded the case back to Jefferson County for a new trial.

The second jury took less than 60 minutes deliberating Thursday before returning a guilty verdict in the case.

Adkins is scheduled to be sentenced on the latest conviction June 15.

Jefferson County prosecutors presented the jury photos of the infant boy’s ribs and brain during the re-trial that started with jury selection Tuesday.

Adkins and Steele were both arrested and charged in connection with the baby’s beating. According to court documents, the neonatologist at Cardinal Glennon became concerned because the child had an enlarged head.

An ultrasound and CT scan ultimately revealed the baby had bleeding between his skull and brain. Other tests revealed the infant also had 14 rib fractures and a skull fracture with brain tissue injury.

Court records show that while Steele was the one who assaulted the child, Adkins was also charged because she was aware of the abuse but did not stop it or report it.