High Point Mother Charged With Murder After Daughter's 2025 Death Ruled Homicide

HIGH POINT, N.C. — A High Point mother now faces a first-degree murder charge following a death investigation involving her 13-year-old daughter, whose body was found in a home in October 2025. High Point Police announced the new charge October 8, 2026, after the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined the girl's death was a homicide.

The latest announcement marks a major development in an investigation that began nearly a year earlier. According to an earlier High Point Police Department release, officers responded to a welfare check at a residence on East Farris Avenue on October 13, 2025. They found a 13-year-old girl dead and a 13-year-old boy inside the home. Detectives assigned to the Special Victims Unit took over the case.

Police said their investigation continued through interviews and additional follow-up work. On October 30, 2025, detectives arrested Kymberli Bowden, then identified by police as a 44-year-old High Point resident and the mother of the two teenagers. At that time, investigators charged her with two counts of felony child abuse and concealment of death. Police said she was held at the Guilford County Jail in High Point under a $1 million bond.

The October 8 update adds the allegation of first-degree murder. The department said the state medical examiner's determination of homicide was central to the new charge. A medical examiner's homicide finding addresses the manner of death; the criminal charge is a separate allegation that must be proven in court.

The police announcement did not provide a detailed account of the girl's cause of death, and it would be inappropriate to infer circumstances not publicly confirmed by investigators. The case involves a child, and police have previously cited the victims' ages and the ongoing investigation when limiting the information they release.

The developments are significant for High Point residents because the investigation concerns the death of a teenager inside a local home and has proceeded through multiple stages over nearly twelve months. The distinction between the original child-abuse and concealment charges and the new murder allegation is important: the October 2026 announcement reflects an escalation in the criminal case, not a conviction.

Bowden is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. The next steps will occur through the court process, where prosecutors must establish the elements of the charges and the defense will have an opportunity to challenge the evidence. Anyone with information about the investigation can contact High Point Crime Stoppers at 336-889-4000.