HOUSTON — A Dallas judge sentenced a young mother to 99 years in prison Friday after she admitted to super-gluing her toddlers hands to a wall and beating the girl so severely she ended up in a coma, officials said.
Were very happy with the judges decision, Debbie Denmon, spokeswoman for the Dallas County district attorney’s office, told The Times.
Judge Larry Mitchell told the mother, Elizabeth Escalona, that his decision came down to the fact that “You savagely beat your child to the edge of death,” according to the Dallas Morning News, which live-tweeted coverage of the sentencing.
Escalona, 23, pleaded guilty on July 12 to injury to a child. Prosecutor Eren Price had sought a 45-year sentence, while Escalona had hoped for probation. The judge, however, nearly doubled the prosecution’s recommendation, citing the brutality of the attacks.
The prosecutor said Elizabeth Escalona wasnt sorry for what she did. She was sorry for herself, not the child she tortured,” Denmon said. Her children now have a chance to lead a productive life.
Escalona will have to serve 30 years before she becomes eligible for parole, Denmon said.
Escalona’s attorney did not return calls Friday morning. She told those at the court she plans to appeal the sentence, Denmon said.
During the sentencing hearing, which started Monday, Escalona took the stand in her own defense, admitted that she abused her 2-year-old daughter Jocelyn Cedillo and pleaded for leniency.
“I hit her, I kicked her constantly and she didn’t deserve that,” Escalona said, confirming that she glued the girls hands to the wall, according to the Dallas Morning News. But, she added, I want everybody to know that I’m not a monster. I love my kids.
Escalona, a mother of five, said she was molested, abused by boyfriends, and was a recovering marijuana and cocaine addict. She was raising her children on child support payments in a one-bedroom apartment with bed bugs, according to the Dallas Morning News.
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Texas mom gets 99 years for beating, super-gluing girl's hands
