Woman Convicted of Aggravated Child Abuse Sentenced to 27 Years In Prison
A West Palm Beach woman accused of punching and stabbing her infant son with a shard of glass, and then cutting the arm of her 8-year-old daughter was convicted of two counts of
aggravated child abuse and sentenced to 27 years in state prison.
The accused woman's criminal defense team argued that the woman suffered from severe mental health disorders, as well as an addition to painkillers.
The accused woman had initially been charged with one count of
attempted first-degree murder and one count of aggravated child abuse. However, the jury came back on a lesser charge of aggravated child abuse, finding that she did not intend to kill her child.
The woman's attorneys asked for a sentence of time served and probation, which was exactly what the woman's family wanted.
Even one of the child victims wrote a letter to the judge asking for leniency.
Under Florida's sentencing guidelines, the accused scored a minimum of 10 years in prison. The woman's attorneys argued for a
downward departure sentence since the woman had shown remorse for her actions.
The judge rejected the defense arguments and sentenced the woman to 27 years in prison. Given the time she had already served, this was the maximum sentence allowable by law.