Australia: Mother Starves Daughter, Gets Life In Jail

SYDNEY, Australia — An Australian woman has been sentenced to life in prison for the starvation death of her 7-year-old daughter.

Justice Robert Allan Hulme called the girl's death "unimaginably heartless and cruel" as he sentenced the 36-year-old mother on Friday.

The woman was convicted of murder in June. Her husband, convicted at the same time of manslaughter in his daughter's death, was sentenced Friday to 16 years imprisonment, with possible parole after 12 years.

The couple, who cannot be named for legal reasons meant to protect the identity of their three other children, had pleaded not guilty to murdering their daughter.

The girl, known as Ebony, weighed barely 20 pounds (9 kilograms) when she died November 2007. Several doctors testified she suffered the most severe case of malnutrition they had ever seen.

Comments

[jane gallagher]

Here is more info on this story.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/mother-of-starved-girl-jailed-for-life-20091002-ggii.html

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/a-cruel-mothers-life-behind-bars/story-e6freuy9-1225782265483

[jstarks]

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,22800499-2702,00.html

More details from 2007 when the girl died.

[Paula Ann]

could it be that the parents withheld tube-feedings like that case in florida not so many years ago? not saying it's right but details are missing here.

[Sing Out and Slap Iron]

Google it and get back to us!

[Jawst]

Women are often punished more then men for the same crime, not always but often. This is so sad the father needs to spend the rest of his life behind bars too.

[kweenipie]

I don't understand why the father only got 16 years and will possibly be out in 12. They are both equally responsible for the welfare of their children and they are both equally responsible for the murder.

[janeycat]

Damn....so­me people should not be able to have kids ...she should be medically sterilized­..
hope her other kids ar ok and are with people that will love them and feed them well...mal­nutritcion can cause different things to be wrong with kids,,

[sviolette]

I'm sure life in prison will take care of that for her.

[StJames]

I really regress when I read things like this. Prison is too good for these two.

[escribacat]

Well stated.

[mikefina]

Interesting that they don't name adults convicted of crimes--especially of this magnituded.

Anyone from Australia or who knows their judicial system care to comment. Here in the States' that is almost unheard of.

ps no scorching polemic about American justice please, just trying to learn something, here.

[sviolette]

The names were withheld to protect the surviving children.

[Thabit]

The last names of the surviving children should be changed (why would they want to keep that name anyway) to protect the public from the father that will one day walk the streets again

[lkim65]

I wonder why the father only received manslaughter. Now these are the kinds of cases when I'm all for the death penalty...

[ForRichardorPoorer]

they could always starve the parent(s) to death in prison....­...just thinking

[Poiks]

Religious reasons?