Friday, July 31, 2009

Babysitting boyfriend loses appeal in beating death of 22-month-old girl (Douglas County, Nebraska)

Babysitting boyfriend ANDRE ROBINSON was convicted of beating his girlfriend's 22-month-old daughter to death back in April. The boyfriend has just appealed his life sentence, but has lost.

http://www.wowt.com/news/headlines/52193787.html

Court Upholds Sentence in Child's Death

The Nebraska Supreme Court has upheld the conviction and life sentence of a man who beat his girlfriend's 22-month-old daughter to death.

Andre Robinson was sentenced in April 2008 in Douglas County District Court for the November 2006 death of Branesha Thomas.

Prosecutors had said Andre Robinson kicked Branesha Thomas "like a soccer ball" while he was baby-sitting her and that she received multiple injuries. An autopsy showed the girl had blunt-force trauma to her abdomen and bleeding on her brain.

In his appeal, Robinson argued there was not enough evidence to support his conviction, that his lawyer was ineffective and that his sentence was excessive, among other things.

The state Supreme Court rejected those arguments in an opinion released Friday.