Slain infant's mother weeps as killer gets 15-30 years
A mentally ill South Philadelphia man who pleaded guilty to fatally shaking his crying 7-week-old son and throwing him to the floor was sentenced Friday to 15 to 30 years in prison.
A mentally ill South Philadelphia man who pleaded guilty to fatally shaking his crying 7-week-old son and throwing him to the floor was sentenced Friday to 15 to 30 years in prison.
Christopher L. Miller's sentence drew gasps from his family and tears from his father, Robert Berry, who has pledged his support when Miller is released from prison.
April O'Conner, Miller's girlfriend and the mother of the dead baby, rushed from the courtroom sobbing. She had described Miller as "the most wonderful person."
Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Rose Marie DeFino-Nastasi said Miller's "level of violence is frightening.
"You cannot be around children ever again and anyone is living in denial who thinks you are not a danger to children," DeFino-Nastasi said.
In March, Miller, 25, pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and child endangerment in son Lamont's death.
On Oct. 8, 2011, Miller was watching his daughter, then 3, and his newborn son at his mother's house.
Miller testified that he got into a heated argument with his mother, who did not like O'Conner, and that when his mother left the house the infant began crying.
"I'm sorry, I'm deeply sorry," Miller told the judge. "I didn't mean for it to happen. I got angry and I lost my temper."
"And what did you do?" asked DeFino-Nastasi.
"I shook my son and threw him to the floor," Miller replied.
Assistant District Attorney Bridget Kirn said the infant had four broken ribs, a lacerated liver, and significant brain damage, and lived 17 months more in a vegetative state.
Miller, at first charged with aggravated assault, was charged with murder after the child's death.
Lawyer Ronald L. Greenblatt, who represented Miller with Brian J. McMonagle, argued that the baby's death was the culmination of Miller's troubled childhood and mental illness.
Greenblatt said Miller grew up in a house with two severely autistic brothers and a third brother who is legally blind. Miller was diagnosed with schizophrenia at age 11 and was hospitalized several times.
Berry and O'Conner testified that Miller was not a violent person and was fine when he was on his medication for schizophrenia.
Kirn argued for a sentence of 18 to 36 years in prison. She said Miller's strong family support did not save Lamont's life.
"All this defendant had to do was take care of him for one night," Kirn said.
"I think there's a lot of denial going on in this case," DeFino-Nastasi said before sentencing.
DeFino-Nastasi noted that when she questioned Berry and O'Conner, both said they thought Miller was fine the night of the incident.
The judge also noted that Miller's only prior criminal record was as a juvenile at age 16 when he was adjudicated for burning an 11-month-old baby's face with a cigarette.
DeFino-Nastasi also said she was stunned to learn that while Lamont was in a nursing facility after the incident, Miller and O'Conner had another child, a boy, born April 16, 2013.
"You are this mentally ill, but you sure could make another baby," DeFino-Nastasi told Miller. "It's outrageous to one's sensibilities."
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