BAKER COUNTY, Fla. — Rhonda Jewell, the former babysitter convicted of third-degree felony murder in the death of a 10-month-old baby girl, was sentenced Friday to 17 years in prison.
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Jewell was convicted earlier this month of the murder charge and causing great bodily harm to a child by leaving them unattended in a car in July 2023 after leaving Ariya Paige inside of a 133-degree hot car for five hours.
Several family members and friends for both Jewell and 10-month-old Ariya spoke in court Thursday. There was some emotional testimony.
And Jewell read a letter, directly addressing Ariya’s family.
“You will never know how truly sorry I am,” said Jewell. “I was the go-to person to take care of your child to make sure she was happy.”
Ariya’s parents read victim impact statements.
“We didn’t get to see her take her first steps,” said Brooke Paige. “I didn’t get to hear her say mama. I won’t get to hear about her first love, her first heartbreak, her dad won’t even get the chance to walk her down the aisle.”
While nothing can take away the pain of losing a child, Ariya’s family hopes to continue to advocate for awareness and change to ensure that no family has go through something like this.
“I wanted our family to engage in something positive, make something positive come out of this so that no other child would lose their life or no other family would have to suffer the way we’ve suffered,” said Pamela Paige, Ariya’s grandmother.
Ariya’s family said they are still planning to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit.
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