Teen Mom Gets 8 1/2 Years In Prison For Injuring Baby
WAUKEGAN, Ill. (STMW) -- A 19-year-old Waukegan woman was sentenced to 8½ years in prison under a plea deal Wednesday for serious injuries she inflicted on her 6-month-old daughter last July.
Yaritza Vargas had been charged with four separate counts of aggravated battery, including aggravated battery to a child, a Class X felony that carries a range of six to 30 years in prison upon conviction.
Judge James Booras accepted a plea deal presented by Assistant State's Attorney Eric Kalata and defense attorney Julio Argueta, representing Vargas, in which she pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted aggravated battery to a child, a Class 1 felony.
Under terms of the agreement, Vargas was sentenced to 8½ years in prison with the possibility of day-for-day credit for good behavior, which could lead to her release after about four years.
Vargas was also sentenced to 48 months of felony probation following her prison term that will include random drug and alcohol testing, parenting classes, 300 hours of community service and no contact with children under 17, including her daughter, without permission from the court.
The charges against Vargas stem from injuries she inflicted the morning of July 7, 2013, when she was giving the child a bath, according to reports.
The girl was admitted to the hospital with a leg fracture and other injuries to her face, arms and legs, as well as vaginal injuries.
Officials said that Vargas had previously called her boyfriend and complained that she was frustrated with the child. She was the sole caretaker of the little girl.
Argueta said after the sentencing that Vargas was extremely remorseful about what happened.
"The best thing to come out of this is that the baby's OK," he said.
At the time of the incident, the baby was taken to Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan and then transferred to Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago for further treatment.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2014. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
