Woman Who Severely Beat Baby Gets Prison Time

19-year-old Tonia O'Brien was sentenced Thursday after pleading guilty

A Massachusetts woman who beat her infant son so severely that he still has medical problems a year after the assault has been sentenced to up to 12 years in prison. 

The Berkshire Eagle reports that 19-year-old Tonia O'Brien was sentenced Thursday after pleading guilty to charges including aggravated assault and battery on a child. 

Prosecutors say when emergency personnel responded to O'Brien's Hinsdale home on Dec. 31, 2015, the 2-month-old boy was not breathing and had bruises on his face and chest. 

They say the woman shook, hit and threw the boy. 

The boy is paralyzed on his right side, may be deaf, blind or both and may be susceptible to neurological illnesses due to a severe skull injury. 

O'Brien's attorney said his client wanted to take responsibility. 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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