A 12-year-old accused of fatally beating his baby cousin after she interrupted a cartoon pleaded no contest Wednesday and was sentenced to a juvenile treatment center.
Assistant State Attorney Maria Schneider said the sentence could last 12 to 36 months, depending on his progress. If convicted as an adult, he could have faced life in prison.
"It is a very good deal for him," said Gordon Weekes, who represented the boy. "This is an opportunity for the child to have a second chance at restoring his life and becoming a productive member of society."
After his time in the Tampa-area facility, the boy is to be released to his mother and remain on probation until he turns 21.
The boy was baby-sitting his 17-month-old cousin at her Lauderhill home in January. Police say he became enraged when she interrupted a cartoon he was watching and hit her with a wooden baseball bat several times.
She was later pronounced dead and found to have suffered several skull fractures.
The no contest plea to a second-degree murder charge came after two psychologists said the boy was mature enough to understand the charges and plea deal.
Schneider said the boy appears to be responding well to treatment.
Weekes said the prosecution's cooperation and the community's recognition of the defendant's age led to an effective sentence.
"The community never let anyone forget that this child was a 12-year-old," he said.
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