Silke Jasso
Mississippi man Joshua Blunt was facing up to 20 years in prison after he accidentally left his 8-month-old daughter in a hot car, causing her to die. However, after accepting a plea deal, he will serve no jail time.
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The 26-year-old pleaded guilty to culpable negligence manslaughter and was given a five-year suspended sentence and five years’ supervised probation. He agreed to the plea after the local prosecutor admitted that he did not “intentionally” kill the infant. Blunt says he meant to remove her from the vehicle but forgot due to his suffering from “Forgotten Baby Syndrome,” the medical explanation behind instances like this. It occurs when someone’s motor cortex is out-thinking the cognitive brain, causing them to adjust a daily routine.
Blunt had planned on taking his daughter to her grandmother’s house after dropping his girlfriend off at work but forgot, and instead, went to his restaurant, leaving her in the car.
“People do make tragic accidents,” Blunt said Friday. “And even though I was absent minded, I will never be the same. You can never judge one until you walk in their shoes.”
The baby, identified as Shania Rihanna Caradine, reportedly spent four hours strapped in her car seat inside the car before Blunt returned to find her unconscious. She was rushed inside the restaurant, where Blunt attempted to cool her down with wet towels before an ambulance arrived. After trying for hours to revive her, doctors at the hospital pronounced her dead.
“I really didn’t want to take the plea, but it was best for me and my family because I have these two twins and I wanted to be there, and I wanted to support my family like I always have,” Blunt said. “I can’t do nothing for them if I’m in prison. I’m just trying to be the loving father that I always have been.
“I’m not happy at all at the moment, but it was something I had to do for my family,” he added. “I tried my best to make the right decision.”
Had he not agreed to the plea deal, he would have gone on trial for manslaughter on Monday.
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