A woman in the United States was sentenced to at least nine years in prison for allegedly killing her 4-year-old diabetic daughter by consistently feeding her Mountain Dew.
The accused, Tamara Banks, pled guilty to the charges of manslaughter in March for her daughter Karmity Hoeb's death in January 2022, the New York Post reported. Hoeb died of brain injury linked to diabetes.
A 41-year-old Banks often used to feed Hoeb with bottles of baby formula, consisting of the neon-green sugary soda, Mountain Dew. Prosecutors noted that the bottle feeding continued long it should have been stopped.
The 4-year-old girl died of diabetic ketoacidosis, a complication mostly linked to Type 1 diabetes, at Cincinnati Children's Hospital, located west of her home in Clermont County.
Hoeb reportedly was showing signs of grave medical issues for several days, however her mother, Banks, did not call 911 until the child turned blue and her breathing stopped. Prosecutors pointed that scans showed Hoeb was brain dead.
For the majority of her short life, Karmity Hoeb faced neglect and abuse, while also being denied proper nutrition and medical care by her parents, the prosecutors were cited as saying by the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Clermont County Assistant Attorney Clay Tharp said, "This child did not have to die," citing that Hoeb lived with undiagnosed diabetes and she wouldn't have died if she had proper treatment and care.
Additionally, Hoeb also had a condition where excessive consumption of the sugary soda caused her teeth to dissolve. Investigators noted that there was no indication that the child was ever taken to a dentist.
Notably, a 20-ounce Mountain Dew bottle contains 77 grams of sugar, whereas it has been said that kids should consume less than 24 grams sugar per day.
Prosecutor Tharp noted that Banks used to regularly refill Hoeb's prescriptions despite the lack of medical treatment. She even had doctors visiting her home to ensure Hoeb's medical needs were met.
"This is one of the most tragic cases I have ever encountered," Tharp said.
Banks also had a son who fell into come at the age of 4 due to undiagnosed diabetes. And even though he recovered, Banks failed to meet his regular medical needs and never attended his follow-up visits with a doctor.
Clermont County Common Pleas Judge Victor Haddad was quoted by the Cincinnati Enquirer as saying, "It's hard to be a good parent but you expect at least mediocre parents, everybody should expect that," adding that, "not knowing what to do is not an excuse."
Notably, Karmity Hoeb's father, a 53-year-old Christopher Hoeb, along with Banks was indicted for murder, involuntary manslaughter and endangering children last summer.
Christopher pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter in return for the pair's guilty pleas.
