Man who shot comatose daughter jailed for life
NZPA-AP Miami A man who said he was insane when he walked into a hospital room and shot dead his comatose daughter, aged 3, has been convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. Charles Leroy Griffith, aged 25, never denied shooting his daughter, Joy, twice, as she lay in her hospital crib in June.
The sentence, by Florida law, carries a mandatory
minimum term of 25 years before parole can be considered.
The judge said that the sentence would be concurrent with a 10-year proba-tion-violation term imposed while the jury was deliberating. The jury also found Griffith guilty of aggravated assault, possession of a concealed weapon, and use of a concealed weapon in commission of a felony, but
no sentence was imposed. Joy Griffith was in Miami Children’s Hospital, having caught her neck between the footrest and seat of a recliner-chair in November, 1984. She had been in a coma since the accident.
“I couldn’t stop her from suffering,” Griffith told the judge before sentencing. “There was nothing I could do. It drove me crazy ... at least she’s not suffering any more.”
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Press, 26 December 1985, Page 5
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193Man who shot comatose daughter jailed for life Press, 26 December 1985, Page 5
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