A US mother who killed her four-year-old daughter by feeding her a diet of Mountain Dew fizzy drinks has been jailed.
Tamara Banks, 41, was sentenced to nine to 13.5 years in prison for involuntary manslaughter over the neglect death of her daughter Karmity in 2022.
Banks, of Ohio, caused her daughter’s death through malnutrition and lack of proper medical care, prosecutors said.
The girl's father, 53-year-old Christopher Hoeb, has also pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and is due to be sentenced on June 11.
Karmity died in hospital after suffering complications from diabetes, with a Clermont County prosecutor describing it as “one of the most tragic cases I have ever encountered.”
Many of the girl’s teeth had rotten away at the time of her death, the court heard.
Prosecutors said Banks and Hoeb fed their daughter mostly Mountain Dew through a baby bottle, reported local news channel WCPO Cincinnati.
Banks' oldest son, Jerry, also told Fox News that something similar happened to his brother in 2011 but that he was saved by doctors.
Mr Banks said: “One day, he just went lethargic and wouldn't move and the only thing he would respond to was sugar and for 36 hours, she [his mother] passed out in the back room.”
Sentencing, Judge Victor Haddad told Banks that her son's previous condition should have made her aware that her daughter was unwell too.
He said: “It's hard to be a good parent but you expect at least mediocre parents, everybody should expect that. Not knowing what to do is not an excuse.”
