GRAND RAPIDS (WKZO-AM) — The mother of a child who just became Kent County’s youngest convicted killer has been found guilty of third-degree child abuse.
Prosecutors say Anita Lawhorn abused Jamarion Lawhorn when he was 11. Jamarion Lawhorn, now 13, told police that he killed nine-year-old Connor Verkerke because he wanted to die, later citing the abuse.
Kim Richardson, the assistant prosecutor in the case, said the jury made the right decision.
“Child abuse cases are never easy, they’re never done in front of people, they’re very hard to prove, and its a very hard decision for (a jury) to make,” Richardson said after the sentence was handed down.
Jamarion Lawhorn’s stepfather, Bernard Herold, had already cut a deal with prosecutors, pleading to similar third-degree child abuse charges. He faces up to two years in prison when he is sentenced.
– John McNeill
