21st May 2011
Sentenced: China Arnold got life in prison without paroleAn Ohio woman convicted of killing her month-old baby daughter in a microwave oven was spared the death penalty and sentenced Friday to life in prison without parole.
Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Mary Wiseman sentenced China Arnold, 31, of Dayton, who psychologists testified showed no signs of serious mental illness.
Arnold declined to make a statement during her sentencing.
Arnold was convicted last week of aggravated murder by the same jury that recommended her punishment. Jurors deliberated about six hours Thursday and Friday.
Prosecutors say Arnold intentionally put 28-day-old Paris Talley in a microwave and turned it on after a fight with her boyfriend. The couple had argued over whether the boyfriend was the infant's biological father.
Defense attorney Jon Paul Rion argued that the evidence pointed as much to the boyfriend as it did to the child's mother, who Mr Rion said was drunk at the time.
After Friday's hearing, Mr Rion told the Dayton Daily News he would appeal. He did not immediately return a message left at his office by The Associated Press.
The prosecutor's office had no immediate comment.
Medical experts testified that the baby died quickly after her temperature reached between 107 to 108 degrees Fahrenheit. They said she probably was in the microwave for more than two minutes.
It was Arnold's third trial in her daughter's 2005 death. Her first trial ended in a mistrial when new witnesses surfaced just before closing arguments.
Sad: One-month-old baby Paris Talley succumbed to her injuries after being 'cooked' in a microwave ovenHer second trial ended in a guilty verdict and a life sentence. But an appeals court overturned the conviction when it found prosecutorial misconduct and said the trial judge erred in not allowing a relevant witness to testify.
The sentencing phase was delayed earlier this week to allow time for a mental exam of Arnold. Two psychologists testified Thursday that Arnold was of average intelligence and showed no signs of serious mental illness.
Dr. Jeffrey Smalldon said Arnold suffered from a 'low-grade chronic depressive condition' as well as alcohol and drug abuse. He said he found nothing 'that would have justified the death of this child'.
In arguing for the death sentence, Assistant Montgomery County Prosecutor Dan Brandt told the jury there were no factors that mitigate the 'purposeful murder of baby Paris in that microwave'.
Defense attorney Kevin Lennen said that death or life in prison would be a tough penalty, but death should go only to the worst offenders. He pointed to evidence that Arnold was drunk at the time of the baby's death.
Assistant Prosecutor Dan Brandt told jurors that Arnold's actions were 'even more purposeful' than a slaying with a gun or knife, the Dayton Daily News reported.
During closing arguments, Mr Brandt told jurors: 'Baby Paris is without life, but she's not without a voice. Please listen to her'.
Mr Brandt claimed that Arnold had to carry the baby over, place her in the microwave, shut the door and press buttons. Then she waited while her child cooked to death, Brandt claimed.
Defense attorney Jon Paul Rion had told jurors: 'This doesn't make sense to you. It doesn't. I've been watching your faces'.
The prosecutor cut and fit evidence to show 'this loving mother somehow was so evil that she killed her baby in this way', he said.
Mr Rion has said he 'realised from the first day' that Arnold was innocent.
Prosecutors said Arnold had a criminal past and was convicted of abduction in 2000 and forgery in 2002.
Arnold reportedly took Paris to the hospital the following day but she succumbed to her injuries.
Arnold was initially arrested but then released due to lack of evidence. She was re-arrested in November 2006.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1389418/China-Arnold-sentenced-life-prison-escapes-death-penalty-cooking-month-old-baby-Paris-death-microwave-oven.html#ixzz1MzVx90HS
Sentenced: China Arnold got life in prison without paroleMontgomery County Common Pleas Judge Mary Wiseman sentenced China Arnold, 31, of Dayton, who psychologists testified showed no signs of serious mental illness.
Arnold declined to make a statement during her sentencing.
Arnold was convicted last week of aggravated murder by the same jury that recommended her punishment. Jurors deliberated about six hours Thursday and Friday.
Prosecutors say Arnold intentionally put 28-day-old Paris Talley in a microwave and turned it on after a fight with her boyfriend. The couple had argued over whether the boyfriend was the infant's biological father.
Defense attorney Jon Paul Rion argued that the evidence pointed as much to the boyfriend as it did to the child's mother, who Mr Rion said was drunk at the time.
After Friday's hearing, Mr Rion told the Dayton Daily News he would appeal. He did not immediately return a message left at his office by The Associated Press.
The prosecutor's office had no immediate comment.
Medical experts testified that the baby died quickly after her temperature reached between 107 to 108 degrees Fahrenheit. They said she probably was in the microwave for more than two minutes.
It was Arnold's third trial in her daughter's 2005 death. Her first trial ended in a mistrial when new witnesses surfaced just before closing arguments.
Sad: One-month-old baby Paris Talley succumbed to her injuries after being 'cooked' in a microwave ovenThe sentencing phase was delayed earlier this week to allow time for a mental exam of Arnold. Two psychologists testified Thursday that Arnold was of average intelligence and showed no signs of serious mental illness.
Dr. Jeffrey Smalldon said Arnold suffered from a 'low-grade chronic depressive condition' as well as alcohol and drug abuse. He said he found nothing 'that would have justified the death of this child'.
In arguing for the death sentence, Assistant Montgomery County Prosecutor Dan Brandt told the jury there were no factors that mitigate the 'purposeful murder of baby Paris in that microwave'.
Defense attorney Kevin Lennen said that death or life in prison would be a tough penalty, but death should go only to the worst offenders. He pointed to evidence that Arnold was drunk at the time of the baby's death.
Assistant Prosecutor Dan Brandt told jurors that Arnold's actions were 'even more purposeful' than a slaying with a gun or knife, the Dayton Daily News reported.
During closing arguments, Mr Brandt told jurors: 'Baby Paris is without life, but she's not without a voice. Please listen to her'.
Evidence: Baby Paris was badly burned after being put in a microwave oven - she died in hospital the next day.
Mr Brandt claimed that Arnold had to carry the baby over, place her in the microwave, shut the door and press buttons. Then she waited while her child cooked to death, Brandt claimed.
Defense attorney Jon Paul Rion had told jurors: 'This doesn't make sense to you. It doesn't. I've been watching your faces'.
The prosecutor cut and fit evidence to show 'this loving mother somehow was so evil that she killed her baby in this way', he said.
Mr Rion has said he 'realised from the first day' that Arnold was innocent.
Prosecutors said Arnold had a criminal past and was convicted of abduction in 2000 and forgery in 2002.
Arnold reportedly took Paris to the hospital the following day but she succumbed to her injuries.
Arnold was initially arrested but then released due to lack of evidence. She was re-arrested in November 2006.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1389418/China-Arnold-sentenced-life-prison-escapes-death-penalty-cooking-month-old-baby-Paris-death-microwave-oven.html#ixzz1MzVx90HS
When you’re mom sent you to your room for doing something bad, you probably thought she was the worst mom in the world. Just be happy she didn’t smother you to death, like Marybeth Tinning did with 8 of her children between 1972 and 1985. Marybeth’s M.O. was pretty simple: she would have a child, and then within a year of the child’s birth, Marybeth would come rushing into the emergency room carrying a dead or dying baby. Her story was the same every time: she would claim that the baby just stopped breathing. Somehow, this had to happen 8 times before people started getting suspicious, and Marybeth eventually confessed to murdering 3 of the 8 children who definitely died at her hands. She’s still in prison and has been denied parole consistently since her incarceration.
Susan Smith is the Poster Girl of crazy moms. In 1994, Susan murdered her two sons, ages 3 and 1, by locking them in her car and rolling the car into a lake. Susan then reported the children as missing to the local police, claiming that a “black man” had stolen her car with the children inside. The story gained national attention, and concerned mothers across the country were on the lookout for Susan’s stolen car, her missing children, and anyone who could be described as “a black man”. Within a couple of weeks, though, Susan admitted to murdering her own children, and everyone in America wanted to kick her ass. According to Susan, she killed her children in order to attract an older man who wasn’t interested in taking on a family, so Susan thought “oh, that’s perfect! He never said anything about not wanting to be with a murderer, so I’ll just kill my family and then we can be happy forever!” Obviously, Susan suffered from some mental problems. She’s still in prison today, and she probably will be for the rest of her life.
Octomom (aka Nadya Suleman) didn’t kill any of her children, but some might argue that what she did is even worse: despite already having six children, she basically overdosed on fertility drugs in order to give birth to a set of octuplets so that she could become famous. She’s the second woman to give birth to octuplets in America, and her 8 babies have a record survival time, meaning that usually octuplets die shortly after birth. Nadya’s plan worked perfectly, and within a few weeks after giving birth to the octuplets, Nadya was an international celebrity. Shortly after that, people began to learn about Nadya’s life, and that’s where she began to lose fans. It turns out that, even before she was artificially impregnated with the octuplets, Nadya was a single mother to 6 previous children, was unemployed, and was living on welfare. That’s not exactly the best time to be popping out eight more hungry babies. Nadya makes the list for putting her own personal lust for stardom in front of her babies, her 6 older kids, and any sense of moral dignity. Then again, considering that Nadya has 14 kids, she doesn’t look bad at all. 
Andrea Yates is another baby-killer who drew national attention and quickly became a household name, at least when your family was having conversations about filicide. Andrea had a long history of depression, mental disorders, and diagnosed psychosis. Numerous doctors had warned her and her husband that her psychosis could prove dangerous to her children, but Andrea and her husband ignored the warnings. Then, in 2001, Andrea’s craziness got the best of her. She methodically drowned all five of her children in the bathtub in the span of one hour. The children ranged between 7 months and 7 years old. Andrea drowned the younger children first and saved the 7-year old for last, then she creepily laid all the bodies out on her bed. Despite her blatant craziness, her husband still talked about having more children with Andrea all through the trial. And you thought your mom was nuts for making you take a shower every day.
Diane Downs was basically the protege for the more infamous Susan Smith. In 1983, Diane shot her three young children, ages 4, 7, and 8, then drove them all to the hospital and reported that her car had been hijacked, that the hijacker had shot all of her children, and that she had narrowly escaped, suffering only a bullet wound to the arm. One of her daughters was pronounced dead on arrival, and the other two children were in critical condition. At first, doctors and police had no reason to doubt Diane’s story. After all, it was the 80′s and people weren’t very intuitive back then. It wasn’t until Diane visited one of her surviving daughters in the hospital that they became suspicious. Even though Diane’s daughter was incapacitated, she became terrified at the presence of her mother. After some further investigation, they soon discovered that Diane was carrying on an affair with a guy in Phoenix, Arizona. If she ever wanted to be with him, she’d have to get rid of this pesky family she’d built. Diane was sentenced to life in prison, and she’s been denied parole numerous times. She’ll be in prison for the rest of her life. Still, it might be a good idea to not let your mom watch the Lifetime Original Movie of Diane Downs, just to be safe. 
If you were making a list of “Things Not To Do With a Newborn Baby”, the number one item on the list would be “Don’t put it in the microwave”. Unfortunately, China Arnold left this all-important rule of her list and microwaved her newborn baby to death in 2005. The grisly murder occured when China was “intoxicated” and got into a fight with her boyfriend regarding the baby’s paternity. China placed the baby in the microwave and fired it up. She then took it to the hospital the following day, where the baby died from injuries. China was convicted of murder in 2008 and is currently serving a life sentence, but here conviction was recently reversed, so China’s heading back to the court room for a third trial. Good luck ever enjoying a Hot Pocket again.
Most of us will remember the creepiest news story to come out of 2008. The story was about Josef Fritzl, an Austrian man who built a secret sex dungeon in the basement of his house, locked his favorite daughter in that sex dungeon for 24 years, and continually and repeatedly raped, sodomized, and molested that daughter, fathering 7 incest children with her. Three of those incest children were kept in the basement dungeon with their imprisoned mother for their entire lives. They had never seen daylight. One of the worst aspects of this nightmarish story is that Josef Fritzl had a wife who was essentially complicit in the acts of her husband. At least, the courts concluded that she would’ve had to go out of her way to ignore the fact that her own daughter was being held prisoner in her basement for over two decades. The next time your son, daughter, niece, or nephew complains about having to do chores, just ask them if they’d rather be imprisoned, enslaved, raped, and molested for 24 straight years.