Texas woman found guilty of starving stepson to death

By Marice Richter DALLAS (Reuters) - A Texas woman was found guilty on Tuesday of starving her 10-year-old stepson to death and then dumping his body in a creek bed. Elizabeth Ramsey, 33, faces up to 99 years in prison for her role in the 2011 death of Johnathan Ramsey. Her husband and the boy’s father, Aaron Ramsey, was sentenced to life in prison last year in the boy’s death. The sentencing phase of the trial starts on Wednesday. Ramsey's lawyers had asked jurors to find her guilty of a lesser charge, arguing that Aaron Ramsey was the instigator and she was forced to participate in the crime. Prosecutors blamed the couple equally for Johnathan’s death. "Aaron Ramsey is a monster, but the one thing that defense counsel continues to leave out is that his wife, Elizabeth Ramsey, is also a monster," prosecutor Jason Fine told jurors, the Dallas Morning News reported. Witnesses described Elizabeth Ramsey as a habitual liar with a hot temper, the newspaper reported. The boy's skeletal remains were discovered in April 2012 after a month-long search. At the time of their arrest, the couple confessed to locking the boy in a bedroom of their Dallas home and feeding him only bread and water as punishment for misbehavior, according to law enforcement officials. (Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Peter Cooney)