Plea Deal in Microwave Baby Slaying
Sept. 25 -- A woman accused of killing her month-oldson by putting him in a microwave oven pleaded guilty today to involuntary manslaughter, avoiding a murder trial and possible life sentence.
Elizabeth Renee Otte, 20, did not address the court but sobbed throughout today’s hourlong proceeding. Her infant, Joseph Lewis Martinez, was found dead Sept. 23, 1999, his body crammedinside the 18-inch-wide microwave in the home Otte shared with thebaby’s father. Joseph’s arms were blistered and burned; medical examiners suspect he died after 10minutes in the oven, when his blood temperature reached 106 degrees.
Originally charged with first-degree murder, Otte could have faced life in prison. But in pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter, Otte now faces up to 10 years in prison when sentenced Dec. 4.
Epilepsy Key Plea FactorAccording to experts, Otte suffers from epilepsy. Authorities say she told them she only remembered taking Joseph into her living room and feeding him. Otte did not remember whether she had taken her seizure medication that day.
In pretrial hearings, medical experts said Otte’sseizures are followed often by blackouts of up to 50 minutes. The baby’s father, Joseph Anthony Martinez, told police she had stopped taking medication when she became pregnant, and had more than 50 seizures before and after the birth, evendropping the baby one time.
Kent County prosecutor C. Linwood Gregory conceded that a jury may have acquitted Otte of murder after hearing such testimony.
Otte told authorities at the time that the last thing sheremembered was feeding the baby.ABC affiliate WRIC in Richmond and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
