ROANOKE, Va. – A Roanoke teen who was charged after officers found her newborn in a storage container was sentenced in court Wednesday morning.
Officers responded to the situation at her grandfather's home January 5th. The girl was 14 at the time. WSLS is not naming her because she is a minor.
"She had no prenatal care. She delivered by herself. There was a period of time after the baby was born before law enforcement authorities came to the house, so it was just a bizarre set of circumstances," said Donald Caldwell, Roanoke City Commonwealth's Attorney.
Officers discovered the child when he started crying.
"To get that miraculous cry from the baby inside the tub, they could have walked out and this would have been a homicide," said Caldwell.
The teen was charged as a juvenile for attempted murder and as an adult for malicious wounding as well as child abuse and neglect.
The teen pleaded no contest to attempted murder. For this, she is sentenced to an indeterminate amount of time in juvenile detention as a serious offender. In two years, she will be eligible for early release with good behavior.
She pleaded no contest to malicious wounding. Her 15-year sentence will be suspended if she doesn't violate probation after serving her attempted murder sentence.
She pleaded guilty to child abuse and neglect. Her 5-year sentence for this charge will also be suspended if she doesn't violate probation.
In total, if she violates probation following her release from juvenile detention, she could serve 20 years in prison.
Her baby was in respiratory failure and had lack of oxygen and blood flow to his brain when he was taken to the hospital. Caldwell says the uncertainty surrounding the immediate cause of the baby's brain damage and injuries made the plea agreement necessary.
"We really can't tell, and the doctors can't tell, whether those injuries are from the lack of prenatal care, something she did while she was pregnant, whether it happened during delivery or whether it was attributable to her actions that morning," said Caldwell.
The baby is being cared for and continues to recover.
Because the teen was just 13 when she got pregnant and the baby's father was over the age of 18, Caldwell says more charges, including rape, could be filed.