Photo: Tony Webster, CC BY-SA 4.0 / Wikimedia Commons
A Memphis, Tennessee woman who stabbed four of her children to death was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday, according to ABC News.
Criminal Court Judge James Lammey Jr. found guilty last month of Shanynthia Gardner, aged 34, of the murders of her children of 4 years, 3 years, 2 years and 5 months in 2016. Another of his sons, who was 7 at the time, ran away to a neighbor’s house for help, the Shelby County District Attorney’s office said.
Happening now- Shanynthia Gardner has just entered the courtroom for day 3 of her murder trial . Deputies say she stabbed her four young children to death in 2016. Her defense team says she should be considered not guilty for reason of insanity. @3onyourside pic.twitter.com/OUUkNsqm0L
— Shay Arthur (@ShayA_WREG3) December 16, 2021
Shanynthia Gardner has been in custody since the incident at 2016, reported WMC. In December, she was found guilty of 29 charges, including murder charges in first degree, aggravated child abuse and neglect.
Investigators said Gardner had 29 years when he stabbed four of his children, all aged between 6 months and 4 years.
During the trial, Martin Gardner, the children’s father, said that on the day of the stabbing, Gardner she said she was getting ready to watch a movie with the kids. He described her as calm and said nothing seemed wrong.
Her sister also testified that Gardner had a history of mental episodes and often seemed paranoid.
In 2017, a medical expert found Gardner “mentally defective” at the time of the incident.
Gardner’s lawyers argued an insanity defense, but the judge rejected it. Prosecutors agreed she is mentally ill but said she understood the wrongfulness of her actions, the district attorney’s office said.
Gardner was convicted of four counts of first degree premeditated murder, aggravated child abuse, aggravated child abuse murder, aggravated child neglect with a deadly weapon, and aggravated child abuse murder with a deadly weapon.
Lammey sentenced Gardner to life in prison on each count of murder since 15 years for each of the other positions, to be executed simultaneously.
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