Ohio babysitter Lindsay Partin is expected to be sentenced Thursday in the murder of 3-year-old Hannah Wesche. Court is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. ET. The defendant was convicted in April on charges of murder, involuntary manslaughter, and endangering children.
Prosecutors argued she lost control and beat the victim after having recently suffered a miscarriage. The defense attempted to blame the death on Hannah’s father Jason Wesche. Jurors weren’t convinced. They found Partin guilty.
Butler County authorities said Hannah was found unresponsive March 8, 2018, and passed away on the 18th. Deputies arrested Partin, and said she confessed to hitting the girl.
At trial, however, the defendant said she lied about causing Hannah’s fatal injuries. Partin insisted that she made up the story because detectives were asking if she had been abused by her husband. She also claimed to have worried about the liability of Jason Wesche. She said she respected law enforcement, but alleged that investigators were pushy.
“They only wanted their own answers,” she said. “I felt pressured. I felt forced. I wanted to protect everybody. I felt bullied.”
Defense lawyer Melynda Cook Howard said in closing arguments that Jason Wesche was the person behind Hannah’s death. She said he showed no emotion when shown pictures of the victim during testimony, and pointed out that he falsely told investigators that he went to Walmart to get milk on March 7.
Jason Wesche attributed that misstatement to being stressed in the wake of his daughter’s injuries.
Assistant Prosecutor Lindsay Sheehan said Partin’s confession was credible. The defendant, not detectives, provided details as to what happened, she said.
[Screengrab via Law&Crime]
