A woman from North Dakota was sentenced by a judge on Tuesday to approximately 19 years in prison. This sentence is in relation to the death of a baby and the injury of another boy, both of which were linked to her unlicensed home child care center.
Patricia Wick, a resident of Jamestown, faced legal charges last year. In January, she entered a guilty plea to several charges including felony murder and child abuse, as well as a misdemeanor for operating an unlicensed day care center in Carrington.
State District Judge James Hovey has sentenced Wick to 40 years in prison on the murder charge, with 20 years suspended and credit for over a year already served. In addition, Wick is required to register as an offender against children and serve 10 years of supervised probation. The judge has also imposed concurrent sentences on the other charges. Wick is also responsible for paying $810 in court fees for the child abuse charge.
Wick’s public defender, Samuel Gereszek, and Foster County State’s Attorney Kara Brinster were unavailable for immediate comment, as they did not respond to phone messages left on Wednesday.
According to the affidavit, Wick admitted to authorities that she may have handled the baby too roughly, lacking gentleness and feeling frustrated with him on that particular day.
According to court documents cited by Valley News Live, Wick recounted that she heard the baby coughing and noticed that he was vomiting. In response, Wick promptly contacted both the child’s mother and emergency services by dialing 911. Wick stated that she took immediate action by making the necessary calls, as reported by the outlet.
The family of the baby received over $20,000 in donations through a GoFundMe campaign.
According to court documents, authorities claim that the other child suffered a broken arm while under Wick’s supervision. The incident occurred when the child fell off a swing in Wick’s backyard. It is alleged that Wick did not promptly inform the child’s parents about the injury.
