In connection with the death of an 8-year-old Minnesota girl who was starved and tortured to death, her father and stepmother were sentenced to 40 years in prison on Thursday.
Autumn Hallow was found dead in the family's apartment in Elk River, Minnesota, last year. Brett Hallow, 30, and Sarah Hallow, 28, pled guilty to second-degree murder and first-degree manslaughter charges earlier this summer.
According to KARE 11, roughly 27 years (320 months) of the 40-year sentence will be served in jail, while the remaining 160 months will be served under supervised release.
Judge Karen B. Schommer stated the jail sentence might be increased if the two commit any disciplineable violations between their punishment and release. Autumn's birth mother, Kelsey Kruse, was present for the sentencing and delivered heartbreaking testimony.
Minnesota girl's death ends with 40 years sentence of father, stepmom
Prosecutors claim Autumn weighed 33 pounds at the time of her death. According to the KARE 11 story, she was the same weight when she was four years old. The stepmother broke down in tears and apologized to the family during the sentence. But, the family's attorney, Rich Hechter said, this is "too little, too late."
Autumn Hallow was beaten and starved by the Hallows in the days and weeks leading up to her death in the couple's apartment on 172nd Avenue Northwest in Elk River, according to a June court appearance.
Per TVNZ, Prosecutors added a charge of criminal threats of violence against Sarah Hallow for an incident in November 2018 before her sentencing on Thursday. Several episodes of abuse were captured in hours of video footage from cameras within the Hallows' flat in 2018 and 2019, they claimed.
Kelsey Kruse spoke publicly for the first time three months after her daughter died last year, in the hopes of bringing about reforms to protect other children.
On Thursday, Kruse gave an impassioned victim impact statement to the court, describing it as one of the most difficult days of her life. Autumn's older brother, who is now 11 years old, also read a statement to Kruse.
Authorities were aware of abuse accusations in the same family for more than a year before Autumn was slain, according to public documents, medical reports, pictures, and recordings.
Kruse has filed a $30 million federal lawsuit against Sherburne County Child Protection, Elk River police, and other mandated reporters, accusing them of negligence and failure to intervene in order to protect her daughter, KXNET reported.
Latest Minnesota crime
After pleading guilty in a case involving the death of a small child, a Minnesota man who was previously barred from having firearms faces a possible jail sentence. Philip Jones, 34, of Moorhead, pled guilty to illegally having a weapon in his home during an appearance in US District Court in St Paul on Thursday.
A visiting child discovered the loaded pistol behind a huge snack chip box in the kitchen while Jones was out, according to court records. When the pistol went off, it hit a 6-year-old kid in the face, killing him.
Three other juveniles were present in the house at the time of the incident, according to investigators. Jones is prohibited from owning weapons or ammunition at any time under federal law because he has several prior criminal convictions in Hennepin and Anoka Counties. There has yet to be a sentencing date scheduled, as per KROC News.
Related Article: Mississippi Man Fatally Shoots Roommates While Child Witnesses Parents' Death
@YouTube
