Scranton man sentenced to 30 to 60 years for 2019 toddler death
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Sep. 24—SCRANTON — A Scranton man who admitted he killed his ex-girlfriend's toddler was sentenced Friday to 30 to 60 years in state prison, the stiffest possible penalty.
Christopher Mele blinked as Lackawanna County Judge Julia Munley set the penalty for causing the 2019 death of 16-month-old Chance Bumbarger. His facial muscles stood out as he worked his jaw.
The sentence comes nearly a month after Mele, 35, admitted he choked and struck Nicole Bumbarger's child late in October 2019. Allowed to speak before Munley imposed the sentence, Mele turned toward Nicole Bumbarger and apologized, while still acknowledging his words do not mean anything. "Talk is cheap," he said.
Mele said he does not know why he did what he did.
City police quickly arrested Mele following Chance's admission to Moses Taylor Hospital on Oct. 28, 2019. The child struggled to breathe.
He died after he was flown by helicopter to Geisinger Medical Center in Danville. The toddler's death was ruled a homicide. Mele was charged with first-degree murder.
In August, Mele pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and child endangerment, which he was sentenced for Friday.
District Attorney Mark Powell called Mele a "baby killer" who has "no redeeming qualities." After the hearing, Powell said he felt Munley's sentence was appropriate for the circumstances of the case.
As Powell remarked in court on the life Chance will never have — growing up and starting his own family — Nicole Bumbarger started to cry. She carries immense guilt, he said, however irrational it seems.
"She will forever be guilt-ridden for allowing the defendant in her home," Powell said.
Attorney Curt Parkins, who represented Mele, took umbrage at Powell's characterization of Mele as a baby killer, calling it "grandiose, designed only to inflame and lacking in substance." Parkins said it implies Mele intended to kill Chance, which he never admitted.
Mele was abused as a child and lived with untreated bipolar disorder, which was exacerbated by his abuse of stimulants, including Ritalin and methamphetamine.
"Is it an excuse? No," Parkins said. "But it explains how this came to be."
Since the day Parkins met him, Mele has been remorseful.
Mele will be given credit for the time he has already served, Munley said.
Contact the writer: jkohut@timesshamrock.com, 570-348-9100, x5187; @jkohutTT on Twitter.
