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Colorado woman sentenced to prison in infant’s death

Posted at 11:04 AM, Sep 03, 2018
and last updated 2018-09-03 13:07:01-04

DENVER (AP) – A 23-year-old Colorado woman has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for the 2016 death of her infant boy.

The Jefferson County district attorney’s office says Bethany Joy Smith, of Golden, will also serve a mandatory five-year parole on completion of her prison sentence.

The Denver Post reports that on June 29, Smith pleaded guilty to negligent child abuse causing death and first-degree assault.

On May 20, 2016, first responders were called to Smith’s home where they found 3-month-old Skylar unresponsive. Efforts to revive the baby were not successful.

Authorities say the baby died from blunt-force head trauma. He had also suffered a broken arm and broken rib.

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