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U.S. NEWS Wednesday 18 July 2018

Day care owner gets probation for trying to kill toddler

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A
Minneapolis day care
owner was sentenced
Monday to 10 years of
probation for trying to kill
a toddler in her home by
hanging him.
Nataliia Karia, 43, received
her punishment in Hennepin
County court after pleading
guilty to attempted murder
and third-degree assault
earlier. She also pleaded
guilty to criminal vehicular
operation for hitting a
pedestrian, a bicyclist and
another driver as she fled
from her home in a minivan
in November 2016.
Karia also must follow
court-ordered mental
health treatment and will
be on electronic home
monitoring for at least two
months, the Star Tribune
reported. She will live with
her adult son but cannot
have unsupervised contact
with her daughters or other
minors. Nataliia Karia, center, with her lawyers Brock Hunter, right, and Ryan Else, reacts during her
According to the criminal sentencing hearing in Hennepin County District Court in Minneapolis, Monday, July 16, 2018.
complaint, a father was Associated Press
dropping off his son at
Karia's home when Karia led
him toward the basement, In a court filing, Warren from harm, Karia "left him probation, pointing out that
where he saw the toddler wrote that instead of being hanging by a noose around Karia already has served
hanging from a noose. He the person most able and his neck in her basement." time in jail and lost her child
released the child and fled willing to protect the boy The defense argued for care career.q
with him. The 16-month-old
boy survived.
Judge Jay Quam agreed
with the assessment by
doctors that Karia was
"a low risk" to reoffend.
He called her actions
"the perfect storm of
factors unlikely to ever be
repeated."
Defense attorney Brockton
Hunter expressed relief on
behalf of Karia.
"We came in here with
our hearts in our throats,"
Hunter said. He said Karia,
who has spent 20 months in
jail since the incident and
will get credit for her time
already served, will leave
jail no later than Tuesday.
Karia, who arrived in the
United States from Ukraine
in 2006, promised to follow
probation and said in court
she was glad no one died.
Prosecutor Christina Warren
pushed for prison time.
Warren raised doubts that
Karia could be properly
supervised outside of prison
and receive the care she
needs to restore her mental
health.