The Latest: Woman gets 10 years in prison in son’s death
PHOENIX (AP) The Latest on the sentencing of an Arizona woman who pleaded to manslaughter in the shooting death of her 9-year-old son (all times local):
11:22 a.m.
A Phoenix woman who says her 2-year-old son fatally shot her 9-year-old son with a handgun that she left on a bed was sentenced to 10 years in prison for her role in the 2017 killing.
The sentence given Thursday to Wendy Lavarnia in the death of her son, Landen, marked the most lenient punishment available under the terms of her guilty pleas to manslaughter and attempted child abuse.
She has acknowledged that she caused his death by recklessly leaving the gun out where the toddler could grab it while the children played a video game.
Still, authorities who had expressed skepticism about Lavarnias account of the shooting say they were unable to definitively say who fired the gun.
7:51 a.m.
A Phoenix woman who says her 2-year-old son fatally shot her 9-year-old son with a handgun that she left on a bed faces sentencing for her role in the 2017 killing.
A plea deal for Wendy Lavarnia calls for 10 to 16 years in prison when shes sentenced Thursday for manslaughter in the death of her son, Landen.
She has acknowledged she caused his death by recklessly leaving the gun out where the toddler could grab it.
In the months after the killing, police expressed skepticism about Lavarnias account of the shooting and said they were having a tough time determining who shot the child.
Maricopa County Attorneys Office spokeswoman Amanda Steele said prosecutors still cant determine who fired the gun 2 years after the killing.
