Jessiesgirl1108
January 27th, 2010, 03:13 PM
http://images.onset.freedom.com/alton/medium/kwv8a5-lansdonjeanine.jpgJeanine Lansdon
http://www.ksdk.com/genthumb/genthumb.ashx?e=3&h=240&w=320&i=/assetpool/images/100126031538_maxwelleyer.jpgMaxwell Eyer
A judge sentenced an East Alton woman to five years in prison Tuesday for her part in enabling the murder of a 2-year-old boy in Alton.
Jeanine E. Lansdon, 28, of the 400 block of Lincoln Avenue, may be out of prison within six months, because she already has served about two years in the Madison County Jail. She must serve at least half of the full sentence but got credit for time served.
She previously pleaded guilty in Madison County Circuit Court to a count of endangering the life of a child for failing to seek medical help for Maxwell Eyer, who was beaten to death in late December 2007 by Johnny Garcia. Garcia, 25, formerly of East Alton, pleaded guilty last year to first-degree murder and was sentenced to 44 years in prison.
...
Summers argued for the 10-year maximum sentence, noting that Lansdon witnessed the beating but allowed the child to lay dying. She even left the dying child in the care of Garcia while she and the child's mother went out to look for drugs for Garcia, testimony showed.
"She did nothing at that time to prevent Maxwell Eyer's death." Summers said. "She cannot explain why she let him suffer that long."
Testimony showed that the child went into a seizure and stiffened after the beating. He was vomiting and was unable to sit up. A pathologist, Dr. Raj Nanduri, said four blows caused internal bleeding to the brain.
"He was covered with bruises," she said, and noted that the child had a fracture to the chest that had healed over.
Detective Pete Vambaketes of the Alton Police Department testified that Lansdon and the baby's mother told stories in an effort to protect Garcia. Lansdon originally denied seeing the beating but finally admitted seeing one blow, enough information to implicate the killer, the detective said.
"Johnny Garcia killed Maxwell Eyer with four different blows, yet to this day, she will admit to seeing only one," Summers told the judge.
Lansdon did admit that she saw Garcia beat the child between 10 and 50 times, Vambaketes testified.
...
Summers said the judge ruled according to the evidence, and she was happy with the sentence. Eyer is free on bond, pending a murder charge in the child's death.
http://www.thetelegraph.com/news/years-35579-prison-death.html
From the Father's trial:
A judge handed a 44-year prison sentence Tuesday to an East Alton who beat to death his toddler son for eating chips in bed.
And the judge gave a tongue-lashing to the child's mother, saying it's "unfathomable" that she and the defendant's girlfriend went looking for drugs while the child was dying.
Johnny Garcia, 24, received the sentence in connection with the death in December 2007 of his 2-year-old son, Maxwell Eyer. As part of deal with prosecutors, he had pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in exchange for prosecutors agreeing to seek no more than 50 years in prison.
The child's mother, 25-year-old Linsey Eyer, testified against Garcia at his sentencing hearing Tuesday. She, too, has been charged with first-degree murder and is awaiting trial.
Eyer, who was not living with Garcia at the time, said she picked up Maxwell from a stay at Garcia's house at about 2 p.m. on Dec. 27, 2007. She said the child's body was stiff and he was unresponsive, but he was breathing. Maxwell's eyes were looking to the side and wouldn't move, Eyer said.
When she asked Garcia if anything had happened to the boy, Garcia said the boy might have fallen off a bed, Eyer testified.
Eyer said she and Garcia tried to get Maxwell to relax his body by putting him in warm water. They also tried putting milk in his mouth with a syringe.
Eyer said she tried calling a doctor's office, but didn't get an answer. She said Garcia told her that if Maxwell wasn't better by the next day, she could take him to the hospital.
Garcia, Eyer and Garcia's girlfriend, 28-year-old Jeanine Lansdon, then brought the child to Eyer's home in Alton.
Eyer said Maxwell "seemed to be sleeping" at about 5 p.m. That's about the time that, at Garcia's request, Eyer and Lansdon went out to try to find Garcia some Vicodin, a narcotic pain reliever that is often abused.
The women returned about 9 or 10 p.m., and Maxwell still seemed to be sleeping. But Garcia was upset because the women didn't find any drugs.
"He was yelling at us for not getting any Vicodin," Eyer testified.
So Eyer and Lansdon went on a second Vicodin run. But while they were gone, Garcia called them and said there was something wrong with Maxwell. The women returned, and Eyer finally took Maxwell to a hospital emergency room in Alton.
Lansdon also is charged with first-degree murder.
Alton Police Lt. David Hayes said Lansdon has told investigators that Garcia beat the child during the stay-over at Garcia's house. Hayes said Lansdon told police that Garcia hit the boy because he caught him eating chips in the bed shared by Garcia and Lansdon.
"She said it sounded like a grapefruit hitting the ground," Hayes testified.
Lansdon and Eyer are charged under the accountability theory.
Garcia's attorney, John Delaney, questioned Eyer about her actions.
"You're guilty of murder, aren't you?" Delaney asked.
"No," Eyer answered.
"You let your son die," Delaney said.
"I didn't know he was hurt," Garcia replied.
Garcia, when given an opportunity to make a statement to the court, declined.
Associate Judge James Hackett said the facts of the case mortified him.
"I don't understand, at all, the care that was given to this child, the response by the parties involved," Hackett said. "It is unfathomable to me how that could happen."
Eyer testified she had previously been in contact with the state Department of Children and Family Services because she suspected Garcia of abusing the boy. Eyer said she sometimes allowed the boy, as well as the 7-year-old daughter she has with Garcia, to stay at Garcia's home - even though DCFS instructed her not to let Garcia be around the children without supervision.
"I let them see their Dad, yeah," Eyer testified.
Garcia also has two children with Lansdon, plus another child from another relationship. Garcia's sister, Chrystal Garcia, testified she's never seen her brother harm any of his five children.
http://www.bnd.com/breaking_news/story/869810.html
http://www.ksdk.com/genthumb/genthumb.ashx?e=3&h=240&w=320&i=/assetpool/images/100126031538_maxwelleyer.jpgMaxwell Eyer
A judge sentenced an East Alton woman to five years in prison Tuesday for her part in enabling the murder of a 2-year-old boy in Alton.
Jeanine E. Lansdon, 28, of the 400 block of Lincoln Avenue, may be out of prison within six months, because she already has served about two years in the Madison County Jail. She must serve at least half of the full sentence but got credit for time served.
She previously pleaded guilty in Madison County Circuit Court to a count of endangering the life of a child for failing to seek medical help for Maxwell Eyer, who was beaten to death in late December 2007 by Johnny Garcia. Garcia, 25, formerly of East Alton, pleaded guilty last year to first-degree murder and was sentenced to 44 years in prison.
...
Summers argued for the 10-year maximum sentence, noting that Lansdon witnessed the beating but allowed the child to lay dying. She even left the dying child in the care of Garcia while she and the child's mother went out to look for drugs for Garcia, testimony showed.
"She did nothing at that time to prevent Maxwell Eyer's death." Summers said. "She cannot explain why she let him suffer that long."
Testimony showed that the child went into a seizure and stiffened after the beating. He was vomiting and was unable to sit up. A pathologist, Dr. Raj Nanduri, said four blows caused internal bleeding to the brain.
"He was covered with bruises," she said, and noted that the child had a fracture to the chest that had healed over.
Detective Pete Vambaketes of the Alton Police Department testified that Lansdon and the baby's mother told stories in an effort to protect Garcia. Lansdon originally denied seeing the beating but finally admitted seeing one blow, enough information to implicate the killer, the detective said.
"Johnny Garcia killed Maxwell Eyer with four different blows, yet to this day, she will admit to seeing only one," Summers told the judge.
Lansdon did admit that she saw Garcia beat the child between 10 and 50 times, Vambaketes testified.
...
Summers said the judge ruled according to the evidence, and she was happy with the sentence. Eyer is free on bond, pending a murder charge in the child's death.
http://www.thetelegraph.com/news/years-35579-prison-death.html
From the Father's trial:
A judge handed a 44-year prison sentence Tuesday to an East Alton who beat to death his toddler son for eating chips in bed.
And the judge gave a tongue-lashing to the child's mother, saying it's "unfathomable" that she and the defendant's girlfriend went looking for drugs while the child was dying.
Johnny Garcia, 24, received the sentence in connection with the death in December 2007 of his 2-year-old son, Maxwell Eyer. As part of deal with prosecutors, he had pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in exchange for prosecutors agreeing to seek no more than 50 years in prison.
The child's mother, 25-year-old Linsey Eyer, testified against Garcia at his sentencing hearing Tuesday. She, too, has been charged with first-degree murder and is awaiting trial.
Eyer, who was not living with Garcia at the time, said she picked up Maxwell from a stay at Garcia's house at about 2 p.m. on Dec. 27, 2007. She said the child's body was stiff and he was unresponsive, but he was breathing. Maxwell's eyes were looking to the side and wouldn't move, Eyer said.
When she asked Garcia if anything had happened to the boy, Garcia said the boy might have fallen off a bed, Eyer testified.
Eyer said she and Garcia tried to get Maxwell to relax his body by putting him in warm water. They also tried putting milk in his mouth with a syringe.
Eyer said she tried calling a doctor's office, but didn't get an answer. She said Garcia told her that if Maxwell wasn't better by the next day, she could take him to the hospital.
Garcia, Eyer and Garcia's girlfriend, 28-year-old Jeanine Lansdon, then brought the child to Eyer's home in Alton.
Eyer said Maxwell "seemed to be sleeping" at about 5 p.m. That's about the time that, at Garcia's request, Eyer and Lansdon went out to try to find Garcia some Vicodin, a narcotic pain reliever that is often abused.
The women returned about 9 or 10 p.m., and Maxwell still seemed to be sleeping. But Garcia was upset because the women didn't find any drugs.
"He was yelling at us for not getting any Vicodin," Eyer testified.
So Eyer and Lansdon went on a second Vicodin run. But while they were gone, Garcia called them and said there was something wrong with Maxwell. The women returned, and Eyer finally took Maxwell to a hospital emergency room in Alton.
Lansdon also is charged with first-degree murder.
Alton Police Lt. David Hayes said Lansdon has told investigators that Garcia beat the child during the stay-over at Garcia's house. Hayes said Lansdon told police that Garcia hit the boy because he caught him eating chips in the bed shared by Garcia and Lansdon.
"She said it sounded like a grapefruit hitting the ground," Hayes testified.
Lansdon and Eyer are charged under the accountability theory.
Garcia's attorney, John Delaney, questioned Eyer about her actions.
"You're guilty of murder, aren't you?" Delaney asked.
"No," Eyer answered.
"You let your son die," Delaney said.
"I didn't know he was hurt," Garcia replied.
Garcia, when given an opportunity to make a statement to the court, declined.
Associate Judge James Hackett said the facts of the case mortified him.
"I don't understand, at all, the care that was given to this child, the response by the parties involved," Hackett said. "It is unfathomable to me how that could happen."
Eyer testified she had previously been in contact with the state Department of Children and Family Services because she suspected Garcia of abusing the boy. Eyer said she sometimes allowed the boy, as well as the 7-year-old daughter she has with Garcia, to stay at Garcia's home - even though DCFS instructed her not to let Garcia be around the children without supervision.
"I let them see their Dad, yeah," Eyer testified.
Garcia also has two children with Lansdon, plus another child from another relationship. Garcia's sister, Chrystal Garcia, testified she's never seen her brother harm any of his five children.
http://www.bnd.com/breaking_news/story/869810.html