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A US jury has sentenced Katherine Nadal to 99 years in prison for cutting off her son's genitals.
A jury has sentenced a Texas mother convicted of mutilating her infant by cutting off his genitals to 99 years in prison.
Jurors deliberated for about two hours on Monday before sentencing 28-year-old Katherine Nadal.
They chose among possible sentences ranging from probation to life in prison.
The same jury had convicted her last week of first-degree felony injury to a child.
Prosecutors asked for life in prison. Nadal's attorneys did not request any specific sentence but had asked the jury to not punish her out of hate or revenge.
Nadal had claimed the family dog, a 2.7-3.2kg dachshund named "Shorty," was responsible for mutilating her then-five-week-old son, Holden Gothia, as she slept next to him.
But prosecutors told jurors the mother was high on drugs when she mutilated Holden with an unknown sharp instrument in their suburban Houston apartment in March 2007.
The jury also determined she used a deadly weapon in committing the crime although no weapon was ever recovered by authorities.
Before deciding the sentence, the jury of seven women and five men heard from Dr. Edmond Gonzales, a pediatric urologist at Baylor College of Medicine.
Gonzales testified that Holden faces multiple and costly reconstructive surgeries that have no guarantee of success and will likely need lifelong counseling.
Doctors who examined Holden testified during the weeklong trial it was not possible for the dog to have caused the injuries.
Prosecutor Tammy Thomas said Nadal and Holden's father, Camden Gothia, got into an argument the night before the attack because Nadal was high on cocaine.
Authorities say Nadal, who has a history of drug abuse and has had prior drug arrests, tested positive for cocaine, methadone and Xanax after the attack.
"Nobody wants to believe a mother did this to her child. Nobody does. We wish it was not true but it is true," Thomas said.
Holden, who lost half the blood in his body, survived the attack, but the severed body parts were never found.
Nadal's defense attorneys, meanwhile, told jurors prosecutors had no direct proof their client mutilated her son.
Prosecutor Denise Oncken told jurors no DNA evidence or weapon was found because Nadal cleaned the crime scene before authorities arrived.
Holden, now two, lives with his paternal aunt and her husband, who were given custody after his parents relinquished their rights.
His father sees him regularly.
A US jury has sentenced Katherine Nadal to 99 years in prison for cutting off her son's genitals.
A jury has sentenced a Texas mother convicted of mutilating her infant by cutting off his genitals to 99 years in prison.
Jurors deliberated for about two hours on Monday before sentencing 28-year-old Katherine Nadal.
They chose among possible sentences ranging from probation to life in prison.
The same jury had convicted her last week of first-degree felony injury to a child.
Prosecutors asked for life in prison. Nadal's attorneys did not request any specific sentence but had asked the jury to not punish her out of hate or revenge.
Nadal had claimed the family dog, a 2.7-3.2kg dachshund named "Shorty," was responsible for mutilating her then-five-week-old son, Holden Gothia, as she slept next to him.
But prosecutors told jurors the mother was high on drugs when she mutilated Holden with an unknown sharp instrument in their suburban Houston apartment in March 2007.
The jury also determined she used a deadly weapon in committing the crime although no weapon was ever recovered by authorities.
Before deciding the sentence, the jury of seven women and five men heard from Dr. Edmond Gonzales, a pediatric urologist at Baylor College of Medicine.
Gonzales testified that Holden faces multiple and costly reconstructive surgeries that have no guarantee of success and will likely need lifelong counseling.
Doctors who examined Holden testified during the weeklong trial it was not possible for the dog to have caused the injuries.
Prosecutor Tammy Thomas said Nadal and Holden's father, Camden Gothia, got into an argument the night before the attack because Nadal was high on cocaine.
Authorities say Nadal, who has a history of drug abuse and has had prior drug arrests, tested positive for cocaine, methadone and Xanax after the attack.
"Nobody wants to believe a mother did this to her child. Nobody does. We wish it was not true but it is true," Thomas said.
Holden, who lost half the blood in his body, survived the attack, but the severed body parts were never found.
Nadal's defense attorneys, meanwhile, told jurors prosecutors had no direct proof their client mutilated her son.
Prosecutor Denise Oncken told jurors no DNA evidence or weapon was found because Nadal cleaned the crime scene before authorities arrived.
Holden, now two, lives with his paternal aunt and her husband, who were given custody after his parents relinquished their rights.
His father sees him regularly.
