Woman Sentenced to 13 Years For Leaving Newborn Girl to Die

Wendy J. Villatoro, who a year ago left her newborn daughter to die in a garbage bag she left in a field in Hyattsville, was sentenced Tuesday to 13 years in prison. The judge said she balanced the need to punish Villatoro's "intolerable" conduct with the difficult circumstances of her life. Assistant Public Defender Michael D. Beach said Villatoro became pregnant after she was raped in Honduras, shortly before she came to the Washington area, and asked Serrette to sentence his client to 12 years. Assistant State's Attorney Renee Battle-Brooks argued that whether Villatoro was impregnated because she was raped was irrelevant. "That doesn't make [the baby's] life any less valuable." Washington Post