A Virginia man has been sentenced to two life terms in prison for beating a 2-year-old girl and then refusing to get her medical care before her injuries resulted in her death.
In March, Andrew Byrd, 37, was convicted by a jury of aggravated murder, aggravated malicious wounding, and a slew of other charges for beating his girlfriend’s daughter in 2020.
“This is the most serious crime of all the crimes we’ve got on our books,” Commonwealth’s Attorney Chris Rehak said, according to The Roanoke Times. “This defendant tortured that poor little girl.”
The incident took place on April 16, 2020, when Byrd was in his Roanoke home with the young girl and her two siblings. The children’s mother, Amanda Mithcel, was at work.
When Mitchell returned to the home, she found her 2-year-old with a limp, bruised, and cold, but Byrd refused to let her call for help, the Times reported.
During the trial, Mitchell testified that when she tried to dial for help, Byrd took the phone, strangled her, and threatened to kill the children if she sought medical attention for her daughter.
According to the outlet, Byrd only cared about “getting high” and showed no remorse for the child he had wounded so badly that it eventually claimed her life.
The next morning, Mitchell was able to get her phone so she could call Byrd’s mother, who dialed 911 for her.
The 2-year-old was then rushed to the hospital, but it was too late, the Times reported. Three days later, her family took her off life support.
A medical examiner who testified in the case said that it looked like the young girl had been in a severe car wreck, as it was determined she died of blunt-force trauma to the head.
Byrd’s legal team argued that there were no witnesses to the attack, saying the prosecution was following “wild theories.”
Mitchell is currently facing pending charges of child abuse, cruelty, and drug possession.