Boyfriend of Serenity McKinney’s mother pleads guilty

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - The man charged in connection to the death of a four-year-old Bullitt County girl pleaded guilty in court on Wednesday.

Dakota Hill admitted to the charge of murdering Serenity McKinney.

Hill was dating Serenity’s mother, Catherine McKinney, who also goes by Abby.

Serenity’s body was found in a wooded area along the Jefferson-Bullitt County Line last year. The coroner said it was a homicide, but never listed a cause of death. A family attorney claimed that Hill was abusing Catherine and her daughter.

In exchange for the guilty plea, prosecutors are recommending a 50-year sentence.

WAVE News talked to Serenity’s grandmother at court. She is still devastated by her loss.

“She was four years old. She was a little girl,” Serenity’s grandmother, Melody Roller said. “What could she have possibly done to deserve any of this? I’ll never understand. I don’t think anybody will ever understand.”

Catherine also took a plea deal in the case. She was sentenced to 12 years in prison last month.

Hill will be sentenced in July.

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