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Texas mom gets 99 years for gluing toddler to wall, beating her
[Updated at 4:22 p.m. ET] A Texas mother who super-glued her 2-year-old daughter's hands to a wall and beat her over potty training problems was sentenced Friday morning to 99 years in prison, a Dallas County felony records department district clerk said.
Elizabeth Escalona, 23, will be eligible to ask for parole in 30 years. She pleaded guilty in July to a charge of first-degree injury to a child, a crime punishable by anywhere between probation and life in prison.
"This mom was pure evil, and her children are better off without her," prosecutor Eren Price said after a judge delivered Friday's sentence. "Her five kids now have a chance to lead a productive life."
Escalona’s attorney said that the sentence was excessive and that an appeal would be filed, CNN affiliate KTVT reported.
Escalona's daughter Jocelyn Cedillo was less than two months shy of her 3rd birthday in September 2011 when Escalona used a powerful adhesive to glue her hands to a wall and beat her because of potty training troubles, authorities said. Three other children belonging to Escalona, who was pregnant at the time, witnessed the abuse, according to Dallas County district attorney's office spokeswoman Debbie Denmon.
The child urinated on herself during the ordeal, during which she was hit in head and kicked in the groin, among other forms of abuse, Denmon said.
Oefelia Escalona, the defendant's mother, testified during her daughter's sentencing hearing this week that she found the girl and took her to a hospital. Once Jocelyn was there, medical authorities noticed severe bruises to her face and head, as well as a severe brain injury that led to her temporarily being in a coma.
At this week's sentencing hearing, prosecutors showed pictures of Jocelyn's hands and bruised body and forehead.
"The entire picture was very shocking," said Dr. Amy Barton, then a child abuse pediatrician at Children's Medical Center of Dallas, choking back tears on the stand on Monday. "I see a lot of children, and this was one of the most shocking cases that I have seen."
Escalona asked for leniency during her sentencing hearing this week, saying she behaved like a monster but deserved a second chance, KTVT reported. Her mother asked the judge to sentence Elizabeth to probation, according to KTVT.
Price initially offered a plea bargain of 45 years in prison, but Escalona turned it down, the district attorney's office said.
Price said that the judge, after learning more about Escalona during the hearing, was justified in sentencing her to more time.
"Elizabeth Escalona wasn't sorry for what she did to 2-year-old Jocelyn. Elizabeth Escalona felt sorry for herself," Price said. "Those tears on the stand were for her and not for the toddler she tortured."
An attempt to reach Escalona's attorney for comment Friday was not immediately successful.
Before this incident, Escalona had been investigated by Texas Child Protective Services but never arrested or charged, Denmon said.
The child welfare agency put all of her children in foster care after Jocelyn was taken to the hospital. All five of them, including Jocelyn, are now in the custody of their grandmother, Oefelia Escalona.
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This woman is pure evil. I can't imagine tortuting anyone, let alone a child, in this way. I just keep picturing this poor baby going through such pain at the hands of the one person who is supposed to love and protect her. It's disgusting. And every year the mother spends locked up, she deserves. I just hope the baby doesn't remember this abuse and has a better life now. And I can only imagine how tough it will be for this grandmother who will be raising these 5 children who have witnessed, and probably experienced, this abuse. Such a sad story but hopefully the future will be brighter.
I'm a 51 year old male, and this story has me in tears! How could a person do this to a beautiful, innocent child?! I would have taken that child as my own, because my now 7 year old daughter would have loved a sister!
the tattoo on the neck should have been a clue to anyone that she is "unfit to be a mother" and she should have been sterilized immediately.
What else you expect from the birth and home-state of monsters like George Bush
I think George II was a disaster of biblical proportions but I really don't relate him to this case.
Why stop at the state level as long as you're generalizing? Think bigger. Why not "a country that can produce a man like Hitler" or "a continent...", "a planet...", ..., ..., "a universe..."? None of it works, including your pitiful example.
Her own mother asked for only probabtion and she is the one in custody of these 5 children????Are you kidding me?? Even the grandmother is nuts!
exactly my thought Karen..seems to me the mother was probably inflicted great pain while she was a child..these children should be completely removed from the entire family and given a real chance at life..
They should have glued her to a wall and beat her.
99 years in prison? really? This lady's obviously has mental issues.... This isn't 1780 anymore... what kind of world is this where we treat psychotic people like they are some sort of biblically-evil criminals?
You are correct. The mother obviously has some serious issues, but she's still a person who likely has much to offer the world if her issues were to be corrected. But our society prefers punishment over treatment. We live in The Twilight Zone here: the bible, wherein Jesus tries to teach the importance of foregiveness, non-judging, and love of neighbor, is so often used to justify cruelty against those we disagree with. Yes, the woman was completely wrong in her behavior, but our society should be correcting her as a parent would properly correct an errant child.
it sends a pretty strong message.
Don't beat your kids, KILL them.
You'll spend far, far fewer years in prison for murder.
works cited: State of FL v Casey Anthony
At least justice had a chance to deal what this monster did to that little girl. In New York, a 11 month old child suffered 8 broken bones and the guy that did this horrible act? 60 days in jail!!
The 99 years was to ensure that she wouldn't be eligible for parole for a long, long time. Long prison sentences are put into effect to determine the length of time served before becoming eligible for parole. She, however, deserves ALL the time with NO PAROLE.
The neck tat says it all
Not sure what the punishment here should be but some possibilities are:
Tie her tubes.
Deport her.
Take her children.
Long jail sentence.
But I have seen shorter sentences for multiple murders.
Girl, letting you live is lenient.
geesh, from her photo i had higher expectations of her... she looks like a serial killer