Lawton mom is sentenced in smothering Lawton mom is sentenced in smothering
By Jay F. Marks
Published: September 30, 2008
A Lawton mother convicted of trying to smother her infant daughter in 2006 will be locked up until the girl is an adult.
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That is what Oklahoma County District Judge Jerry Bass had in mind Monday when he sentenced Felicia Jayne Koch to nearly 15 years in prison. She pleaded guilty to child abuse in May 2007.
Bass watched a video of Koch pressing a blanket over her screaming 14-month-old daughter’s face at an Oklahoma City hospital on Sept. 22, 2006.
“I was shocked and sickened at the same time” the judge said.
Tears and a pledge
Koch, 28, dropped her head into her lap and sobbed after Bass announced her punishment Monday afternoon. Tears stained her face as she was led out of the courtroom.
She must serve 14 years and 10 months in prison, the judge ruled. The remainder of Koch’s 30-year sentence was suspended.
Koch apologized for letting down her daughter in a letter defense attorney David Slane read to the judge.
She also pledged to continue taking her medication and working to become a better person.
Differing opinions
Slane asked the judge to sentence Koch to five years in prison so she could get some mental health treatment.
“She knows she needs help,” he said.
Prosecutors urged the judge to sentence Koch to 20 years in prison, a term likely to ensure she won’t have any more children.
“This lady has no business ever, ever having a child in her custody again,” Assistant District Attorney Gayland Geiger said.
Bass opted for a shorter sentence, but he ordered Koch not to have any unsupervised contact with children while she is on probation.
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What the heck??? You mean she shot a video of it? Good Lord!!! I agree with your solution Michael and also add, tie her tubes and NEVER let the b.... have another child! I get so sick and tired of hearing about this type of thing. Oh the mother is "mentally ill"...needs help, etc. Why on earth are people like this allowed to get pregnant in the first place!??? Beats all I ever saw.
The judge should have ordered guards to sneak in her cell every night and smother her "just a little bit". That would teach her the lesson she really needs to learn.
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