OAN’s Avril Elfie
5:44 PM – Thursday, April 18, 2024
A mother who admitted to suffocating her two-month-old baby to death while high on methamphetamine has now been released after prosecutors failed to prove murderous intent.
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Judge Mark Stoner acquitted 32-year-old Dacia Lacy of neglecting a dependent in the death of her daughter Alona in 2022.
According to a report by WTHRStoner has already come under fire for sentencing a mentally ill man who shot and killed a police officer to a “jail sentence” and is facing calls for his resignation.
According to law.cornell.edu, “sentence term is used colloquially in courts to impose a sentence that is deemed to be satisfied entirely by the time the defendant was previously incarcerated while the defendant was awaiting sentencing. It is a term used in
The mother was shockingly acquitted despite the judge telling her it was a case of “bad parents”.
“There are some things you just can’t do. You can never monopolize your child to go out or do drugs,” Stoner said. “You are not innocent, but you are not guilty of the crimes that the state has accused you of.”
Lacey could have faced up to 40 years in prison if convicted.
Stoner said there was “no evidence to support the charge” that Lacey neglected his dependents, causing their deaths.
“Not every mistake or mistake is a crime,” Stoner said. “You have to do something with criminal intent and criminal responsibility, and that’s what the defendant is charged with. When the state charges an individual, it has to do something with criminal intent. You have to prove it. By definition, improper parenting is not a crime.”
There were no signs of long-term abuse, such as broken bones or other injuries that would indicate neglect of dependents. Additionally, pathologists were unable to determine the baby’s cause or manner of death.
“It’s important to understand that the prosecutor chooses the charges. It’s the prosecutor who chooses the charges. The prosecutor has a review division to decide what to charge,” Stoner added.
Lacey sobbed and gave a long confession to police about how he suffocated his daughter, who was high on methamphetamine, to “stop her crying” and put her to sleep, according to court documents.
Investigators learned during the trial that Lacey’s other daughter, who was 3 years old when the baby died, witnessed her mother suffocating the baby with a pillow.
A toxicology report said methamphetamine was detected in Lacey’s mother’s system the day her baby died.
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