Convicted of child neglect, Amanda J. Alvather slouched in her chair in the defendant's box in an Allen Superior courtroom for her sentencing hearing Tuesday morning.
Alvather - whose three children Fort Wayne Police found dressed in dirty clothing, covered in filth and feces, and smelling of urine in her West Creighton Avenue home - offered Magistrate Robert Schmoll only one-word answers during his questioning.
After Alvather declined Schmoll's offer to address the court before sentencing, he ordered the 24-year-old mother to serve two years in prison, followed by four years of probation.
Schmoll then offered his comments.
“You brought three children in the world, and after that you just didn't do anything for them,” he said.
Alvather attempted to interrupt Schmoll, but the magistrate stopped her and continued.
“You drank, you doped, you didn't take care of your kids. I hope you learn something in prison.”
Allen County prosecutors said Alvather knowingly or intentionally placed her three children in unsafe conditions sometime between Oct. 13 and Oct. 27, 2008, in her home.
There, police found the children filthy and untreated for medical conditions.
All three were taken to the hospital because of their health conditions, documents said. The 2-year-old, who weighed 13 pounds, was admitted to Parkview Hospital for dehydration, hyperglycemia and neglect. Court documents also said the child did not receive proper care for Down syndrome.
The children were removed from the home, and now a protective order as part of Schmoll's sentence will prevent them from being returned to Alvather.
Alvather pleaded guilty to the two counts (a Class C and a Class D) of neglect of a dependent in September.
That deal included the possibility of Alvather serving her sentence in work release or with direct placement to Community Corrections for assessment, education and treatment, but her attorney, Quinton Ellis, told the court Tuesday she has not yet been approved.
Conditions of Alvather's probation will include 20 hours of community service, full-time employment, substance-abuse treatment and parenting classes, Schmoll ordered.
