CHARLOTTE, N.C.,None — A Charlotte man will spend at least 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to felony child abuse in a case that resulted in a toddler's death last year.
Randy Moorehead, 20, said nothing as he entered his plea in a Mecklenburg County courtroom Thursday morning. But the mother of the little girl he admitted abusing had plenty to say after the hearing.
"…It's overwhelming, it's heartbreaking. There's no way to explain how I feel, except that I miss my baby," said Lattayne Caldwell as she stood outside the courthouse, wearing a tiny picture of her daughter, Jalenthia, around her neck.
"When you've lost a child that didn't have a chance … there are no words," she added.
Moorehead and Caldwell were dating in 2009 when Caldwell left Jalenthia with him for several hours. When she came home, prosecutors said, the baby was in her crib, but soon started having seizures. When she went to the hospital, doctors found severe brain damage. Jalenthia died several days later.
Moorehead's sentence came after a plea agreement, which would keep him from facing a murder charge.
Caldwell's family said they were not happy with the 10-year sentence, but they realize that prosecutors had only limited evidence to work with.
They also warned other parents not to lose patience with their small children.
"If you're that frustrated with a child, walk away. Any parent, any grandparent, anybody," Jalenthia's grandmother said. "If you're incapable, then don't even allow yourself to do it. Don't put on a front."
For information on Shaken Baby Syndrome, click here.
WSOC
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