Calif. mom gets 6 years in meth breast milk death
Mar 20, 2012, 7:31 PM
EUREKA, Calif. (AP) – A California woman whose infant son died after ingesting methamphetamine-laced breast milk has been sentenced to six years in prison.
Maggie Jean Wortman, of Humboldt County, Calif., pleaded guilty last month to voluntary manslaughter as part of a deal with prosecutors, who had said they’d otherwise pursue a murder charge.
An autopsy on 6-week-old Michael Acosta III found that the baby died of “methamphetamine toxicity” on Nov. 21, 2010. Prosecutors say Wortman should have known the dangers of breastfeeding her child after using the drug.
The Times-Standard of Eureka reports (
http://bit.ly/GDZPCO) that the 27-year-old woman’s attorney argued during Monday’s sentencing that his client should be placed into a drug treatment program with probation, rather than prison.
But Judge Bruce Watson referred to a probation report that said Wortman has not fully taken responsibility for her son’s death.
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Information from: Times-Standard,
http://www.times-standard.com
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