Mother Admits To Cruelty Son’s Death

LAFAYETTE, La. (AP) — Prosecutors say a 24-year-old Lafayette woman who failed to stop her boyfriend from beating her 3-year-old son for months before he died has pleaded guilty to cruelty in the death of Julian Madera.

The Advocate reports Laura D. Smith  pleaded guilty Monday before District Judge Glennon Everett to one count of cruelty to a juvenile.

Smith's attorney, Randal McCann, said Everett ordered a presentencing report and would sentence Smith later this year.

According to Louisiana sentencing laws, the cruelty conviction carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison at hard labor. It is possible Smith's sentence will be less severe in exchange for her cooperation in the death-penalty prosecution of her former boyfriend, Landon Broussard.

In March 2013, a grand jury charged Broussard with first-degree murder.

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Information from: The Advocate, http://theadvocate.com

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