A 27-year-old Pennsylvania caretaker was sentenced to 47 years in jail for murdering a two-year-old boy, who was beaten, starved and fed antifreeze.
A judge gave the sentence to Jedayah Nesmith, who earlier this month pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of a child, charges of third-degree murder, and abuse of a corpse in connection with Azim Jones-Fearon's death in 2017.
As per Pennsylvania state law, she needs to serve at least half of her sentence, which means that she will be behind bars for a minimum of 23.5 years, reported Law & Crime.
Nesmith tried to pay her ex-boyfriend $1,000 to get rid of the boy's remains. She allegedly told him that he had to get rid of something, and that it was the size of a loaf of bread. When he noticed that it was a baby, he asked whose it was, but she told him not to worry about it. He refused to dispose off the body and eventually helped cops find out what happened.
Nesmith was the girlfriend of the victim's mom when the incident took place. As the boy's mom was working, she had asked Nesmith to take care of him. On numerous occasions, Nesmith claimed that the toddler was staying with her mother in the Poconos, according to NBC Philadelphia.
But in March 2017, cops found the toddler's remains in Nesmith's apartment. He was found emaciated and naked on a bed inside her house. He had sustained injuries to the body and head.
According to prosecutors, after she took the boy in February 2017, she starved him, didn't give him water, and thrashed him. Ultimately, she left him inside her house for many weeks, reported Inquirer.
District Attorney Larry Krasner said on Monday, "The criminal justice system can never bring back this beautiful two-year-old boy's life." But he felt grateful to Assistant District Attorney Nora Nienhagan Greenberg for helping to hold the culprit accountable. Referring to the case, he also said that it “speaks of some of the terrible concerns that we have for infants and for children who may be in danger of child abuse.”
Greenberg said that the toddler’s mom was not charged in connection with his death.
