Mom Convicted In 1991 Murder Of 5-Year-Old Son Gets 30 Years
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A Florida woman convicted of killing her 5-year-old son in New Jersey in 1991 was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
A judge on Thursday told Michelle Lodzinski she had repeatedly lied about the disappearance and death of Timothy Wiltsey. The Port St. Lucie woman declined to address the court and was wearing a wrist brace after injuring it in a fall.
For nearly an hour, Lodzinkski sat in front of the judge with her hair half-covering her face, at one point, wiping away tears.
"You lied, and you lied. That's what happened here," the judge said.
A former juror came to the sentencing for closure, CBS2's Raegan Medgie reported.
"We felt an attachment to Timmy, as if we were there fighting for him and I think the prosecution did an amazing job of laying out their case and proving her guilt," Joe Mulvanerton said.
Lodzinski was convicted of killing Timothy Wiltsey last summer.
The 49-year-old said her son disappeared from a carnival in Sayreville, then later claimed he was abducted.
She has denied any role in the boy's death.
The boy's remains were found in 1992 in a marshy area in Raritan Center in Edison, close to his mother's old job.
Lodzinski was charged in 2014 after witnesses identified a blanket found near the boy's body.
Her attorney read letters from her friends who said she was a great mother to her two teenage boys.
"She provided a great, safe and loving home environment for them and was very over protective of them," attorney Gerald Krovatin read.
Prosecutors, who had pressed for a life sentence, also read a letter from the boy's father.
"School events, yearly family picnics, swimming, boating and so much more -- these are the things I had to stand back and watch. I only imagine my Timmy should have been here for this," prosecutor Christie Bevacqua read.
The judge gave her 884 days credit toward her sentence.
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