Man Gets 19-Year Prison Sentence For Role In Death Of His Girlfriend's 6-Year-Old Son
MIDDLETOWN, Ohio (AP) — A man was sentenced Tuesday to 19 years in prison for his role in the death of his girlfriend's 6-year-old son, who authorities say died when his mother tried to abandon the child and his two older siblings at an Ohio park.
James Hamilton, 43, must also register as a child victim offender and a violent offender. He had pleaded guilty in August to kidnapping, gross abuse of a corpse and two counts of child endangerment in the death of 6-year-old James Hutchinson in February.
The boy's mother, Brittany Gosney, 29, received a life sentence last month. She pleaded guilty in August to murder and two counts of felony child endangerment.
Authorities have said Gosney told investigators that she was under pressure from Hamilton to get rid of James and his two siblings, ages 9 and 7. She drove the three children to the park in rural Preble County on Feb. 26, where she planned to abandon them, authorities said, but there was no indication that she planned to kill them. James Hutchinson died after he grabbed for a door on his mother's vehicle and was dragged.
Gosney and Hamilton dumped James' body into the Ohio River near Lawrenceburg, Indiana, on Feb. 28, authorities have said. Flood conditions initially prevented a search effort there, and the boy's body has not been recovered despite searches.
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