KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) — A Kalamazoo woman has been sentenced in the 2014 death of her infant daughter.
The Kalamazoo Gazette reportsthat 23-year-old Tekia Wright was sentenced Monday. Kalamazoo County Circuit Court Judge Pamela Lightvoet sentenced Wright to 28 months to 15 years in the Michigan Department of Corrections.
Her 11-month daughter, Gabrielle, died on June 13, 2014. Prosecutors allege Wright left her daughter alone for hours that night. Court documents say the child was dehydrated among other things. A pathologist couldn’t determine the infant’s cause of death.
Wright pleaded guilty last month to involuntary manslaughter. In the plea deal, second-degree child abuse charges were dropped.
Wright’s attorney, Becket Jones, asked the judge to consider a one-year sentence. He’s said Wright was possibly dealing with postpartum and mental issues at the time.
