A 33-year-old woman has been sentenced to 50 years in prison after killing a child.
Shawna Hooey from Tomball, Texas, US, was convicted of murdering her boyfriend’s four-year-old daughter, Jakyzia Alexander, on 3 April.
An autopsy showed the little girl died from blunt force trauma to the head with such force that it would have resulted in seizures, dazed reactions and vomiting almost immediately.
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The child’s body also had repeated signs of past abuse.
Hooey was charged with murder by investigating deputies at the Harris County Sheriff’s office and attended the nine-day jury trial in Harris County.
She will have to serve half of her sentence before being eligible for parole.
The murder took place in September 2019, as reported by Need To Know.
On the 7th, Hooey arrived at a 24-hour emergency centre with the four-year-old.
Upon arriving at the centre, her body was already cold, with a visible black eye and other injuries.
Hooey reportedly told medical personnel and the authorities four different accounts of what had happened to the little girl.
She claimed to have driven Jakyzia around in a hot car to wake her up, after she was taking deep laboured breaths and acting strangely.
She then drove home, changed the child’s clothes and took her to the emergency clinic.
The different versions of the incidents that led to Jakyzia’s death told by the killer included that the girl ran into a door knob and threw herself against a toilet paper holder in the bathroom.
At the time, Hooey was looking after her own five children as well.
When she began dating Jakyzia’s father, the child moved in with Hooey while the dad stayed with family members closer to his work.
Due to his work schedule, he did not see his daughter in person for two months before her death, having only spoken to her via video call.
Harris County district attorney Kim Ogg said: “We have to work together as a community to protect our children who are particularly vulnerable to abuse from violent adults.
“We are thankful to the jurors who recognised that this was not a single incident, but a pattern of abuse and rightfully sentenced this woman to spend decades behind bars.”
Assistant district attorney Gilbert Sawtelle added: “Child abuse does happen, and when we see it, we need to call it out and notify the police and child protective services.
“This girl was wearing long sleeves in the summertime – and if someone had noticed her injuries and intervened, she would probably still be here today.”
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