A British mother who let her son starve to death, then left his body on a bed for nearly two years was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 15 years in jail on Thursday.
Judge Roger Thomas of Bradford Crown Court told 43-year-old Amanda Hutton that she did not "fulfill the most basic responsibilities that you, as a mother, should have fulfilled," Businessweek reported.
Police found the remains of Hutton's son, 4-year-old Hamzah Khan, in their home in Bradford, northern England, in September 2011. Khan's body had been mummified after he died sometime during December 2009. Judge Thomas stated that the child was wearing clothing made to fit a baby of about 9 months of age.
"Although it is beggar's belief that such a thing can happen, it has, of course, happened here," Businessweek reported the judge as saying. "It has done so through your purposeful, persistent and gross conduct in failing in that most basic and fundamental requirement that is upon every parent to feed her child adequately."
The judge also said that the mother of eight had a serious drinking problem, and that "you placed your own selfish addiction to drink well before your responsibilities to your many children."
According to Judge Thomas, Hamzah's corpse was only found after a police officer went to the family's house in response to a neighbor's complaints about soiled diapers being tossed onto their property. When the cop took a look at the household, he became extremely concerned: pizza boxes littered the floor, used diapers were strewn about the house, along with vodka bottles, cat excrement and the remains of their toddler brother.
Hutton confessed that she hadn't taken proper care of her children, especially five of her oldest, with ages ranging between 5 and 13.
According to Businessweek, authorities are investigating why the neglect occurred for so long in Hutton's house, and how officials had no idea it was happening.
