Portland, Ore. – Life in prison, with no chance for parole until 2054. That is the sentence handed down to Jessica Smith, a Washington mother who drowned her toddler daughter and slashed the throat of her teenage daughter, according to the Associated Press.
Smith did not speak at Thursday’s sentencing in Astoria, 25 miles north of the coastal resort where the attack occurred two summers ago.
The 42-year-old Smith entered Alford pleas last week to charges of aggravated murder and attempted murder. In such a plea, the defendant doesn’t admit guilt but acknowledges there is enough evidence for a conviction.
Smith attacked the children as she and her husband were divorcing amid a custody dispute. Court documents indicate the girls’ father sought a custody evaluation less than two weeks before the children were found at the Oregon resort.
The ex-husband, Greg Smith, addressed Jessica in court, saying he wishes her peace.
